Utica Magazine - Fall 2017

A MAGAZINE OF UTICA COLLEGE FALL 2017

A Meaningful Mile

Unity Walk exemplifies community spirit

Student Startup Success | Tangerine Editors Look Back | Remembering Professor Marijean Levering

As this issue was going to print, the UC community lost one of its greatest treasures, the legendary and beloved professor Raymond Simon. The next issue will pay tribute to Professor Simon, the “Father of Public Relations Education,” his remarkable life and career, and the indelible impression he left on his students. In the meantime, we share the following tribute, written by Professor Simon’s daughter, Brooke Candelaria, in the final weeks of her father’s life.

Our childhood home had a great big maple tree in the backyard. It provided the excitement of spring with a profusion of buds. Endless play and imagination centered around that tree. It was behind the maple where you’d loudly count for hide and seek. It delivered brilliant hues in the fall, and a towering gray tangle of sculpted branches under cold winter skies.

Most importantly, it was under that tree on hot summer days where Dad would take a break on his lounger at lunchtime, having spent the morning working on his next book.

My sister and I would bicker over who got to deliver Dad’s lunch. It was always a privilege to do so.

After a number of years, the tree didn’t produce as many leaves. Branches were snapping off. It thinned out. Finally, as if from just being tired, it let us know it was time. We had to say goodbye to our beloved maple tree, which had provided countless wonderful memories. I cried when my uncle led the project and our extended family pitched in, recalling and relishing good times.

These past few days, I’ve come to see the tree as a metaphor for my Dad. I’ve known him as reliable, rooted, giving, growing and changing, colorful, and protecting us. Now that he has moved into a nursing home and I’ve visited him for the first few times, I know that our great tree has had his last autumn and is quietly slipping into his winter.

Dad has had a remarkable 102 years, though dementia is the cruelest thief. We’re beyond blessed to have had Dad all these years, and I know my sister and I have the most loving parents one could ever hope to have.

It doesn’t make this any easier.

FIRST WORDS Letter from the Editor ‘Pioneering’ a New Look Last spring, the Pioneer magazine blew up.

That is to say, the staff and I decided to look critically at the current publication, take it apart, decide what works—and what doesn’t—and start fresh.

The first thing to go? The name. After more than 30 years, UC’s Pioneer needed a refresh, and a new moniker would signal the same type of exciting change happening within the College itself. Utica, we reasoned, was just bold enough to work.

Next, we brainstormed new ways to share the best parts of UC—the students, faculty, and alumni doing amazing, groundbreaking, quirky things right here on campus and all over the world. We wanted to create a magazine that tells the Utica College story in 80 pages or less.

With help from graphics wizard Kevin Waldron, I spent weeks in the late spring redesigning sections, editing features, and reimagining the look and feel of UC’s signature publication.

Anthony Joseph, fan of Utica magazine and bathtime

And then I had a baby and forgot all about it.

One more new addition to mention: In June, we launched Pioneer Pulse, a bimonthly e-newsletter designed to keep readers in the know between magazine issues. If you’re not receiving the Pulse and would like to, drop us a line and we’ll add you to the mailing list.

Kidding. But my maternity leave after the birth of my son, Anthony Joseph Donofrio on June 23, 2017, did throw a wrench into the timeline for the magazine’s publication. I hope you can forgive him for the fall issue’s late arrival in your mailbox (he’s cute, so it shouldn’t be too hard).

That said, I think you’ll find the finished product was worth the wait. From two-sport superstar Nic Gambill, to former Tangerine editors turned professional journalists, to pioneering members of UC’s Black Student Union, and

much more, the first issue of Utica magazine is exactly what we hoped it would be: dense with Pioneer Pride.

As always, let us know what you think. Share your thoughts on our new look and the stories in this issue via email at pioneer@utica.edu.

Mary Donofrio Editor

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Everyday Pioneers:

Alison Brown ’17 English major Alison Brown ’17 has always been inspired

by William Shakespeare’s work. But while researching his classic comedy The Tempest, she discovered how one of her own ancestors might have inspired the playwright himself.

In the fall of 2016, Alison Brown spent lots of time with The Tempest. The story, one of Shakespeare’s most famous, centers on Prospero, who is cast off to a remote and deserted island at the behest of his jealous brother. During her research, as part of an independent study with Professor Jason Denman, Brown studied how the play’s setting—the now clichéd “desert island”—came from Shakespeare’s keen interest in Colonial Jamestown and a particular tale from the early 1600s.

When the earliest colonists began settling in Virginia, seven convoy ships loaded with supplies were sent from England to Jamestown. While six ships arrived safely in America, the

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biggest ship, called the Sea Venture, wrecked off the coast of Bermuda. With plenty of food and supplies, however, all of the passengers survived on the island for many months. In fact, they were able to rebuild the Sea Venture and finish the journey to Jamestown nearly 10 months later.

But their welcome wasn’t exactly a warm one. Without the expected supplies, the colonists back in Virginia had little food over the winter, and nearly three-quarters starved to death.

The period became known as “The Starving Time” in Colonial history.

As Brown learned, Shakespeare heard the story of the Sea Venture and was instantly

enthralled. The notion of the colonists thriving on the Bermuda island was “magical to him,” explains Brown. “Many scholars believe the story of the Sea Venture inspired Shakespeare to write The Tempest.

I was fascinated, because you don’t often think of Shakespeare and Colonial Virginia in the same context.”

In the midst of Brown’s research, one tidbit stood out: One of the most important people onboard the Sea Venture was Sir Thomas Gates, who served as governor of Virginia after the island dwellers’ return to Jamestown.

“Gates is my mother’s maiden name, and I knew that I was related to Horatio Gates, an American general in the Revolutionary War,” she says, crediting the discovery to her Aunt Deb, who is “super into ancestry.”

“When I learned about Sir

Thomas Gates, I wondered if I was related to him, too.”

Some online research revealed that General Horatio Gates was, indeed, the great grandson of Sir Thomas Gates, the Virginia governor—and, in a way, Shakespeare’s muse for The Tempest.

“It’s a crazy story, and I love telling people about it,” says Brown. “I’ve always loved Shakespeare, and to find out one of my ancestors inspired him just makes it 10 times cooler. “ Her work with Professor Denman will be featured in an upcoming edition of Notes and Queries, a scholarly journal published by Oxford University.

Today, she’s putting her love for literature to good use as school librarian for the Utica City School District. Brown also plans to study library science in the University of Buffalo’s online School Librarianship program.

CONTENTS

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Everyday Pioneers

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Around Campus

15 Athletics FEATURES 18

The Road to New Haven Hockey star, ice cream mogul, and MBA student Mik Bushinski ’17 is Yale-bound.

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In Memoriam: Dr. Eugene Paul Nassar Dave Dudajek ’72 reflects on the extraordinary life of his former professor and friend.

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Start Me Up How three UC students turned a bright idea into startup success.

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Making Headlines Former Tangerine editors look back on the stories that changed their lives.

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In Memoriam: Professor Marijean Levering Close friends and former students remember the late professor of theatre.

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President’s Report

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Alumni News

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Advancement Updates

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Class Notes

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HERE COMES THE SUN On August 21, all eyes were on the total solar eclipse during a viewing party organized by physics professor Joe Ribaudo.

Editor Mary C. Donofrio Design Kevin Waldron Senior Writers Joe Perry Kelly Adams Photography Jamie Callari Larry Pacilio Kevin Waldron Class Notes Editor Mark C. Kovacs Utica is published twice a year, Fall and Spring, by the Office of Marketing and Communications: Kelly Adams, Assistant Vice President.

Stay in Touch!

Send correspondence regarding Utica, address changes, and Class Notes to: Office of Alumni and Parent Relations Utica College 1600 Burrstone Road Utica, NY 13502-4892 Or call (800) 456-8278, (315) 792-3025 Or e-mail pioneer@utica.edu

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A MEANINGFUL MILE On August 30, more than 500 members of the Utica College community came together for the first annual Unity Walk, a celebration of diversity and community on campus. The day began with a signmaking workshop, where students, faculty, and staff were invited to create colorful signs that define what unity means to them, followed by a one-mile walk that spanned campus. “While others lean toward division today, I challenge every member of the UC community to lean toward inclusiveness and unity,” said President Laura Casamento in her address to the crowd. “That’s why we’re here.”

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EAT FRESH UC’s Dining Commons has a new look, thanks to a $4 million overhaul in summer 2017.

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AROUND CAMPUS

Queens of the Ring Ena Latic ’18 and her sister Tea ’19 are typical college students—and international karate champions with Olympic dreams.

ENA AND TEA LATIC were glued to Twitter on August 3, 2016, when the International Olympic Committee made a decision that would change the course of their lives.

“I screamed,” says Ena, who recalls watching the live stream of the announcement with her sister, Tea, and Sulejman, their father and coach. It was official: After an IOC vote, karate would be an official sport in the 2020 summer games in Tokyo.

With dozens of medals and national and regional titles under their black belts, the sisters from Utica now had their sights officially set on Olympic competition.

The Latic family emigrated from Croatia in 1999, when Ena and Tea were barely toddlers. After settling in Utica, Suleiman, who was once a Yugoslav national karate champion himself, captured a piece of the American dream when he opened a karate

AAU Junior Olympic Games in Detroit (kumite is a Japanese form of sparring). She’s currently the no. 2 kumite fighter in America.

Since then, the sisters have competed—and won—in karate competitions all over the world; in Australia, Italy, and Germany within the last five years alone.

sisters chose their UC majors with a future in karate in mind.

As a physical therapy major, Ena hopes to work with athletes and help them recover after injuries.

From personal experience, she says, “I know the mental aspect of not being able to do something you want to do. I like the idea of helping someone regain strength.”

And of course, there’s the hope of traveling to Tokyo in 2020 for the summer games. With the prospect of Olympic competition on the horizon, Ena and Tea have focused their training on the mental aspect of karate.

For Tea, studying business economics will help her understand the financial side of the Dragon School and to expand the school’s reach. “I want everyone to see what we do here,” says Tea.

“When I came home and showed my mom the gold medal, she was crying,” says Ena. “That was the moment it hit me—I could go somewhere with this.”

“Our dad teaches us that it’s all about how you talk to yourself before you step into the ring,” says Tea. “If you have a clear mind, that’s it. Nothing else matters.”

Tea’s moment came years later at Nationals, where she earned second place at the national kumite championships in the

Outside the ring, the challenge for Ena and Tea has been balancing school with time spent in the karate studio. Both

The sisters’ ultimate goal is to take over Dragon School and run it together, with Tea handling the business side and Ena working with athletes—a continuation of their parents’ American dream.

studio in downtown Utica: Dragon Karate School, where the sisters now train and teach.

As kids, Ena and Tea were surrounded by karate. They spent hours in the studio, located just downstairs from the family’s home, watching their dad train kids and adults, and soon got involved themselves. It soon became clear that Ena and Tea had their dad’s gift for the sport. In 2005, at nine years old, Ena competed in the AAU Junior National Championships in Miami. At 12, she competed with adults in a karate event in Osaka, Japan. She placed first.

“Karate is already our life,” says Ena, laughing. “It might as well be our career, too.”

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AROUND CAMPUS

Faculty Achievement Annette Becker, associate professor of nursing, wrote an article titled “Personal Transformation in RNs Who Recently Graduated from an RN to BSN Program” for the Journal of Transformative Education, a peer-reviewed academic journal for education professionals.

Paul MacArthur, professor of public relations and journalism, co-authored a book, Olympic Television: Broadcasting the Biggest Show on Earth, with Andrew C. Billings (University of Alabama) and James R. Angelini

(University of Delaware). The book provides an overview of how the Olympic experience has been shaped by media entities across various platforms and formats.

David Chanatry, professor and chair of public relations and journalism, is now the moderator of WCNY’s “Ivory Tower,” a weekly, panelbased discussion program focusing on news from the viewpoint of college professors across the region. The show airs Fridays at 8 p.m.

EST on WCNY-TV.

Patricia Swann, professor of public relations and management, is a contributor to a new book, Social Media and Crisis Communication, published

by Routledge. Swann’s article, “From Bashtags to Geobombing: Modern-Day Digital Guerilla Tactics,” describes how activists gain power on social media and effectively pressure organizations to change.

in the April 2017 edition of Bioethics, a peer-reviewed, academic journal that focuses on ethical questions raised by current issues. In his article, Riddle explores critiques of assisted dying from a disability rights perspective.

Christopher Riddle, associate professor of philosophy, published an article “Assisted Dying & Disability”

Joseph Ribaudo, associate professor of physics, published a piece in the July edition of Physics Today titled “Commentary: How Killer Black Holes Saved Astronomy.” Ribaudo discusses how he uses popular and historic science readings as a complement to traditional textbooks in college-level physics courses.

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PIONEER SOCIETY ATHLETICS

Gloria Shaheen ’82 Stewart Starer ’66 Philip ’70 and Barbara ’69 Taurisano Gary ’68 and Mary Thurston Jeremy ’00 and Carrie Thurston

The Pioneer Society honors Utica College’s most generous annual Nicodemus Gambill ’17 donors. The society Hometown: recognizesRochester, those NY Pioneer Society Major: Wellness and Adventure President’s Education Summit Circle leadership donors $10,000 - $19,999 Nicodemus Gambill is the most decorated whose commitment athlete in Utica College at least, and investment in history –Anonymous Bacon III ’82 and so the argument can be made. ACharles dynamic Utica is critical Cynthia sprinter,College he’s a four-time NCAA track and Bacon Kenneth ’75 and Anne Veness to the institution’s field All-American, eight-time national Bell qualifier, 12-timeyear, Empire 8 conference future. Each gifts champion, seven-time New YorkBernice State Benson ’72* received from Pioneer Robert Brandt Jr. and Carole Collegiate Track Conference champion, and Brandt Society donors four-time ECAC champion. He’s helped John Calabrese Sr. ’90 and represent more than lead UC to consecutive Empire 8 outdoor Lori Calabrese track and field team championships.

80 percent of the John Costello III ’66 and Ann Costello On the football field, the senior tailback College’s total gifts.

Thomas Cox Jr. ’69 and All-Region and All-Conference return Christopher Crolius ’80 specialist is, Utica head coach Blaise Pioneer Society Faggiano says, “a game-changerFrederick – the ’70 and Connie Chair’s Summit Circle Degen type of player who keeps opposing $20,000 or more John Donohue Sr. ’57 and coaches up at night.”

Anonymous Robert Brvenik ’77 Larry ’74 and Cora Bull Don H’14 and Edna Carbone Harold Clark Jr. ’65, H’03 and Bernadette Clark Randolph Collins ’83 Steven ’72 and Dorian Critellli Ronald ’66 and Sheila Cuccaro Harry ’71 and Wendy Cynkus James DuRoss Jr. and Cynthia DuRoss Brian and Sandra Gaetano Charles Gaetano H’04 William and Cecelia Gaetano Lawrence and Elizabeth Gilroy Christopher ’61 and Virginia Kelly Albert ’58 and Elinor Mazloom Christian Meyer III ’79 and Mary Beth Welle-Meyer ’79 James Reagan Jr. ’72 and Garnet Reagan James ’73 and Linda Reid John and Jacqueline ’11, G’13 Romano Linda Romano and Russell Petralia* Jeffrey Senft ’76

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Valerie Donohue Robert ’81 and Tammy ’82 Flaherty Arthur Golder ’50* Scot and Jill Hayes Heidi Hoeller ’91 and Paul Serbaniewicz John G’13 and Deborah Johns* John and Heather Johnsen Salvatore and Kathleen Longo William Macartney III and Linda Macartney Sally ’61 and Donald Majka Christopher and Kari Max John ’61 and Elizabeth Meehan* Adalgisa Nucci ’67 Michael and Kelly Parsons Thomas ’65 and Virginia Rossiter Kenneth ’80 and Wendy Taubes Howard Terrillion ’58 DeForest ’62 and Arlene ’63 Tinkler Nancy Williams Robert ’88 and Maureen Wuest Pioneer Society

Burrstone Circle $5,000 - $9,999 Harriet Bamdad ’65 George ’50 and Marilyn Barlow Leo ’54 and Joan ’54 Brannick Enessa Carbone Laura and Philip Casamento John Casellini ’81 and Christine Rutigliano Lee and Dea Casstevens Joseph ’11 and Barbara Chubbuck Thomas Crist Richard and Bonnie Fenner Marianne and Peter Gaige Linda Gigliotti ’69 Rick Green Hartwell Herring III and Paulette Herring Daniel ’97 and Anne-Marie Jones* Stephen and Amanda Mandia Sharon McEwan ’64 Matthew ’88 and Maria Millett Frank ’62 and Clorinda ’62 Mondi Jeana Nicotera Anthony ’72 and Barbara Paolozzi Mark ’88 and Mary Beth Pilipczuk Marianne and Dennis Reynolds Raymond ’59, H’11 and Elizabeth Serway Donald ’53 and Sandra Sherline Thomas Sinnott Tracy Tolles-Rueckert ’90 and Donald Rueckert Shelli ’92 and Symeon Tsoupelis Rosemary Ullrich John Wade and Joanne Donaruma Wade ’76 Ann Wynne ’58 Pioneer Society Scholars Circle $2,500 - $4,999 Anonymous Alan Balutis ’67 and Letitia Tucker Andrew Beakman Hossein Behforooz and Forough Saba Ifigenia Brown Bryant Buchanan and Sharon

Wise John and Nancy Buffa Mary Cahalan ’53* John Calidonna Timothy Coakley ’59 Thomas Cole ’93 Gilbert Condon ’59 Stuart Davis Jr. ’58 and Constance Davis ’58 Benjamin De Iorio ’62 and Donald Daniels ’61 Michael DiGeorge ’80 William ’68 and Judith Dowling Carl and Andrea Dziekan Violet ’73 and J. Chris Eagan Greg and Denyse Evans Christine ’92 and Peter Farley Matthew Fong* Jeffery and Tara Gates Linda Griffin ’72 and Freling Smith David and Janet Griffith Andrew ’69 and Eileen Guzzetti J.K. Hage III and Hedy HydeHage Beth Hershenhart Samuel and Nancy Hester James Hickey ’69 Andrew ’84 and Mary Hislop Todd and Jennifer Hutton Brian ’85 and Michele Jackson J. Eric King ’65 and Kathlene Thiel Robert and Tatyana Knight Gary Kunath ’79 Daniel Kurtz and J. Esther Steinberg George ’67 and Helen Lucke Arlene Lundquist J. Kemper Matt Sr. and Angela Matt Wester ’76 and Lorraine Miga* Wesley Miga ’80 and Karen Stonebraker Miga ’80* Louis Natale ’59 George Nehme Rose Patterson ’87 Eugene Quadraro Jr. ’71 and Mary Quadraro Mario Rocci ’56 Solade Rowe ’94 James ’70 and Sharon Samuel Barbara Starnes ’61 Frederick and Kathleen ’76 Tehan James Teliha

† deceased *arranged for matching gift

ATHLETICS

Copyright: Matthew Raney Photography

Pioneers in the Pros

Keira Goin ’17 Signs Professional Hockey Contract She still hesitates at the sound of her new title. Keira Goin, professional hockey player.

“I won’t lie, it’s a little surreal,” Goin admits.

In September, the former Utica College goaltender signed a professional contract with the Connecticut Whale of the National Women’s Hockey League (NWHL). The NWHL is the first American hockey league to pay salaries to women hockey players. Now in its third year, the league consists of four teams – the Stamford, Connecticut-based Whale along with the Buffalo Beauts, Boston Pride, and the Newark, New Jersey-based Metropolitan Riveters.

Goin graduated in May as UC’s all-time leader in goaltender wins and shutouts. She compiled a four-year record of 40-21-6 with a 1.82 goals-against average and a .932 save percentage. She is the second UC women’s hockey alumna to play professionally, joining Megan Myers ’14, who has played in the Canadian Women’s Hockey League (CWHL) for the past three seasons.

A partial list of former UC athletes who are currently competing professionally or have recently concluded their pro careers Luc Boby ’17, men’s hockey, Jets de Évry-Viry (France) Tim Coffman ’12, men’s hockey, HKm Zvolen (Slovak Extraliga) Louis Educate ’15, men’s hockey, Huntsville Havoc (SPHL) Doug Herring ’09, men’s basketball, BC Orchies (LNB Pro B – France) Trever Hertz ’14, men’s hockey, Pensacola Ice Flyers (SPHL) Kevin Kirisits ’17, men’s hockey, Quad City Mallards (ECHL) Megan Myers ’14, women’s hockey, Boston Blades (CWHL) Mike Slowikowski ’14, men’s hockey, Peoria Rivermen (SPHL) Joel Wetmore ’16, men’s hockey, Macon Mayhem (SPHL) Juwan Wilson ’17, football, Utica Yard Dogs Nick Woodman’ 16, football, New York Giants (NFL – Rookie Camp), Utica Yard Dogs

Sideline Report The UC football team hosted the inaugural New York State Tool Believe Bowl on October 28 against Ithaca. The game supported Believe 271, a charitable foundation that raises funds for local firefighters with life-threatening diseases, and the Thea Bowman House, a not-for-profit organization assisting vulnerable children in the Utica area.

Goin, who first caught the attention of the Whale coaches this past May during a free-agent tryout camp, made her professional debut in the Whale’s October 17 preseason exhibition against the Russian National Team.

The men’s and women’s hockey teams were ranked No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, in the United Collegiate Hockey Conference preseason coaches’ poll. This is the inaugural season of the UCHC.

“I keep forgetting that this is a job. It’s more fun than work, but it’s obviously a lot of work,” she says.

Goalkeeper Samantha Whitefouse ’18 was one of 60 field hockey players nationally selected to participate in the Victory Sports Tours/NFHCA Senior Game. The game will take place on November 18 at Bellarmine University.

“That first game, the nerves were going. Russia is a great team. I had a couple of shots that were high-quality chances right away, so I had no choice but to shake the nerves really quick.”

The NWHL plays a 16-game regular-season schedule, with games held on Friday nights and weekends. Games are live-streamed on Twitter.

The men’s hockey team traveled to France in August for nine-day, four-game cultural exchange. The Pioneers went 3-1-0 in the international exhibitions against French teams Grenoble, Briançon, and Chamonix.

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The People’s Court: Wester and Wesley Miga with women’s basketball coach Michelle Davis, players Ashelyne Babb ’18, Ivan Iton ’18, and men’s basketball coach Sean Coffey

Legendary Fans: Honoring Doris and Walter Miga Doris and Walter Miga’s legacy at UC runs deep.

For nearly 50 years, the couple was a fixture in the stands at UC basketball games. Doris, a Professor Emerita who taught sociology for 47 years, was known as “Mother Miga” to generations of student-athletes whom she mentored tirelessly with her signature “tough love” approach.

Walter, a former college basketball player himself, served as president of UC Sports Boosters; it wasn’t uncommon to find him working the popcorn

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machine outside the Clark Athletic Center gymnasium during halftime.

The UC basketball court, says their son Wester now, was the “center of their lives” for five decades. So it makes perfect sense that, in fall 2018, that very court will bear their names.

Longtime supporters of UC, the Migas’ sons, Wesley ’80 and Wester Miga ’76, wanted to give back in a way that would honor their parents’ legacy. Their generous gift will fund major upgrades to the gymnasium, including reno-

vated seating. What’s more, the brothers have pledged to match dollar-for-dollar every gift made in support of the project. Construction will begin this summer, with a dedication ceremony unveiling the Miga Court in the fall.

“This is exactly what our parents would have done if they were still with us,” says Wester. “Once we realized that, the decision to do it was an easy one.”

To learn more about the Miga Court project or to donate, contact Tim Nelson at tnelson@utica.edu or (315) 792-3489.

“This is exactly what our parents would have done if they were still with us.”

The Road to New Haven

Yale Law School is the next stop for youth entrepreneur, hockey star, salutatorian, and MBA student Mik Bushinski With so many attractive options, it’s hard to make up your mind.

This is one dilemma Mik Bushinski ’17 knows very well. He has seen it in the faces of countless young patrons as they scan the tempting inventory of frozen confections advertised on the sides of his growing fleet of ice cream trucks.

That’s right – ice cream trucks. Since he was sixteen years old, Mik has been running his own mobile food vending business in Minnesota’s Twin Cities region, where he and his family live. His company – MikMart – is now comprised of more than a dozen employees selling ice cream out of five trucks, two pushcarts, and a couple of vending machines.

A dual major in government and politics and economics, class of 2017 salutatorian, and a captain of UC’s men’s hockey team, Mik is no stranger to hard choices. But even his remarkable experience as a teen entrepreneur didn’t prepare him for the daunting and wholly-unexpected challenge of having to choose between six toptier law schools, all vying to include him in their incoming first-year cohorts. Though as problems go, he freely admits, this was a good one to have.

Last year Mik received acceptance letters from Harvard, Yale, Duke, University of Chicago, New York University, and Colombia.

(He also applied to Stanford, which placed him on a wait list.) This impressive result was the culmination of an intensive program of undergraduate study at UC as well as a grueling year of assembling application materials and prepping for the LSAT. “It was a really great admissions cycle,” he says somewhat modestly.

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After careful consideration, he chose Yale Law School, a decision he attributes in part to his time at Utica College.

“Yale is one of the smallest law schools in the country. At Utica I’ve seen how valuable a lower faculty/student ratio can be, whether you’re working on research or just have a question to ask. Obviously the job prospects for graduates are great, so I liked that about Yale, as well as all the resources they provide and the culture of the school. But I think that ability to stay small and receive that individualized attention – something I was able to get at UC – is a huge reason why I wanted to go there,” says Mik. The acceptance call came while he was out shopping with his sister Alexa. Mik was home for the holidays, searching for some last-minute gifts for his family, when his phone rang, the caller I.D. flashing New Haven, CT – the home of Yale Law School.

“When I saw that, I was carrying all this stuff. I just put it all down and said, ‘Alexa – I’ve got to go,’” he says.

He ran out of the store and answered the call. The voice on the other end told him that he was the first person to be accepted into Yale’s Class of 2020. Mik was silent for a moment. “I’m sorry,” he said finally, “thank you so much. I’m kind of at a loss for words right now.”

That evening he shared the news with his family. “We were just sitting around the table at dinner, and I say, ‘Yeah, so listen to this.

I was at the mall today and I get this call. And it was actually just Yale, telling me I’m in the law school.’ The tears started coming, and my dad got up and was really happy. I was just jumping around – it was a really cool experience,” Mik says.

When he went to Yale’s admitted students program in May, Mik attended a mock law school class and came away feeling both excited and relieved.

“Much of what was going on in the class I understood just from my time at UC. I think some students probably wouldn’t have felt the same if they didn’t have such a good foundation in government and in law. So that was something that made me really happy. I get this, I think I’ll be able to really excel at this,” he says.

Mik knew there was much he would miss about his time at Utica College, particularly as his senior year hockey season was coming to a close.

Ice hockey had been a kind of obsession for him since his early youth back in Minnesota. He had even taken two years off between high school and college to play junior hockey, a rollicking, unpaid sojourn that had taken him as far afield as teams in Michigan,

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California, and Alaska. Recruited to UC by coach Gary Heenan, his experience with the Pioneers had been everything he could have asked for – great teammates, a large and enthusiastic fan base, lots of community support, and leadership opportunities.

Because an injury had kept him off the ice as a sophomore, Mik had another year of eligibility to play for the Pioneers. It was a pity he couldn’t take advantage of it. Or could he?

“Yale has a deferral option that allows you to keep your place in the following year’s class. You don’t have to reapply, you just go in the next fall. So I knew that was an option that I could apply for,” Mik says.

Yet another hard choice between very attractive options. But as the year progressed, his path forward became clearer. This was what he wanted to do.

He applied for the deferral and it was granted. Now he could spend another year at UC earning his MBA and finishing out his hockey career, then join the next cohort at Yale with an additional credential and a stronger focus in his area of interest, business law.

Mik felt good about the decision. He had spent a large portion of his life working and training to play college hockey and possibly win a national championship. He had also put a great deal of energy into building his family business from scratch. Completing both the MBA and another successful season with the Pioneers seemed the perfect capstone for the two compelling interests of his youth and an ideal starting point for the next phase of his life.

Professor of Economics and Dean of Business and Justice Studies Rick Fenner – one of Mik’s mentors at UC – wholeheartedly endorses the deferral decision. “Mik thinks things through without acting rashly. That is just the right way to do it,” he says.

It was a remarkable outcome for someone who, just a few years earlier, never could have imagined himself embarking on a legal career, let alone one by way of Yale Law School.

“I’m extremely excited about Yale – still am, and still excited to go in a year from now. But I think my experience at UC, both as part of the student body and being on the hockey team, being part of the community, that’s really drawn me back to UC for one more year,” says Mik. Fenner counts Mik among the top five students he has known over his 29-year career at the College.

“I don’t see much limit on what he can do when he puts his mind to it,” he says.

IN MEMORIAM Dr. Eugene Paul Nassar June 20, 1935 – April 6, 2017

Dr. Eugene Paul Nassar, Professor Emeritus of English, passed away on April 6, 2017 at the age of 81. His former student and current opinion page editor at the Observer-Dispatch, Dave Dudajek ‘72, penned this tribute, which ran in the April 7, 2017 edition of the newspaper.

It’s reprinted here with his permission.

I WAS SCARED TO DEATH OF GENE NASSAR. He was one of my English professors at Utica College way back when, and the fact that he was a Rhodes scholar trying to teach me Ezra Pound’s “The Cantos” simply was more than I could bear. I often sat stupified in class, staring out the window and wondering what the heck I was doing in the same room with this man.

I told Dr. Nassar that just last week as we enjoyed lunch together with artist Bob

Cimbalo at Massoud’s on Bank Place, and he laughed. Gene — I had a tough time calling him that, but he insisted — and I became good friends since those days at UC, and I wished I had known then what a down-to-earth guy he really was. It would have saved me a lot of angst.

Gene always was smiling and full of life when we had lunch together, and that’s the way he was that day at Massoud’s.

Which is why I was left stunned Friday morning when I opened

an email from another former UC English prof, Frank Bergmann, informing me that Gene had died Thursday night at age 81.

If ever there was a guy who bled Utica it was Gene Nassar.

He was born on the 700 block of Lansing Street in East Utica, and lived in the same house for more than 65 years. He was a brilliant man — he quit Yale Medical School after just one week to pursue his love of literature, and returned to his alma mater, Kenyon College in Ohio, where he was awarded a

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“N A S S A R ’ S B R I L L I A N C E WA S S U P E R S E D E D O N LY B Y H I S CO M M I T M E N T TO H I S H O M E TOW N A N D T H E P E O P L E W H O L I V E H E R E .”

Rhodes scholarship. He earned a master’s degree from Oxford University and later received a doctorate from Cornell University.

The new Dr. Nassar taught briefly at Hamilton College before finding a home at UC in 1964. He could have gone anywhere — he had unsolicited job offers from Duke, the University of Rochester and University of Delaware — but stayed in Utica, the place he loved so dearly.

“I guess I have a little Immanuel Kant in me,” Nassar told me in a 1999 interview, referring to the 18th-century German philosopher. “Kant never left his village. They consider that a form of self-burial today, self-immolation.”

Nassar’s brilliance was superseded only by his commitment to his hometown and the people who live here.

“I wanted to teach the kids of the working class and be able to help them work their way up,” he said. “That’s always been the

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key to UC’s success being the school for Central New York, a place where the working-class kid can make it.”

Nassar’s constitution was reinforced by strong Lebanese immigrant roots that ran deep.

During my days at UC, I’d often wait anxiously outside his classroom door, hoping (sometimes praying) that he wouldn’t show up. Little did I know then that Gene Nassar never missed a day of school in his life, including grammar school.

He learned such dedication from his father, who kept the family going through the Great Depression and never missed a day of work in his life.

“Back then, immigrants were afraid to miss work because if they did, somebody might show up and take their place,” Nassar told me.

Our friendship grew over the years, and I quickly discovered the humble, caring, loving man. In addition to a wide assortment of books — many

in collaboration with Cimbalo, fellow Proctor High graduate and longtime friend — Gene wrote many columns for the O-D’s Opinion page. Most were simple reflections on life back when in his East Utica neighborhood, marvelous memories that he has pricelessly preserved for future generations. His roots were very important to him, and no doubt strong motivation for his founding the Ethnic Heritage Cultural Center at Utica College.

the life of the college and the faculty. He was a friend as well as a colleague, and I have a very personal sense of loss with his passing.”

“When I arrived on the UC campus 40 years ago, Gene Nassar was a commanding presence in the faculty. He was someone whom junior faculty members inevitably looked to as a role model,” said John Johnsen, UC provost and vice president for academic affairs. “Many of our alumni remember him with both fondness and great respect.

The fact that Gene had deep life-long roots in Utica made him a commanding figure also in the community as well as on campus. Even after retirement, Gene remained very active in

“Gene Nassar was a scholar of the highest credentials, beginning with his Rhodes scholarship to Oxford,” said UC’s Bergmann, one of his longtime colleagues. “But he was also an East Utica Lebanese homeboy who deeply cared about his town. To me, he was a great friend and mentor at Utica College, irreplaceable.”

Gene also was author of many scholarly works, most of which I still don’t understand.

That’s OK. One thing I do understand is that this community has lost a treasure with the passing of Eugene Paul Nassar.

Irreplaceable, for sure. Gene Nassar loved his family, his college and his community with all his heart and soul. And we loved him.

SucSeed, a nutrition app developed by three UC students, is getting real attention from local investors.

Learn how Professor Brett Orzechowski’s entrepreneurial media course turned Emily Coope ’17, Becky Vennero ’18, and Adam Westbrook ’20 into budding business moguls.

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On the evening of December 7, 2016, Utica College’s Carbone Auditorium looked more like an episode of NBC’s Shark Tank than a college classroom.

food choices. The app acts as a food journal that counts calories and provides detailed nutrition information on thousands of food items.

As part of Brett Orzechowski’s Entrepreneurial Media class, three student teams presented their own mediabased products and services before a panel of judges.

Local media professionals and a virtual audience (via live stream) served as “sharks,” evaluating the pitches as potential investors—and determining students’ final grades.

A planner by nature, Vennero often used the app to plan her meals days— and sometimes weeks—in advance.

The presentations were the culmination of a whirlwind semester filled with content pitches, feasibility analyses, beta testing, and copious deadlines, designed to replicate the real challenges a startup might face in turning a clever idea into a profitable business.

The winner: SucSeed, a niche-market nutrition app that provides meal plans tailored to those with specific dietary issues.

Despite being the final project in Orzechowski’s course, the December presentation was just the beginning for Team SucSeed; students Emily Coope ’17, Becky Vennero ’18, and Adam Westbrook ’20.

The original idea for SucSeed was the brainchild of public relations major Becky Vennero ’18.

“I’d used My Fitness Pal and others to track my meals for the day,” says Vennero, referring to the popular smartphone app that allows users to input their daily

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“I’m usually really busy, so it was easier to plan my meals and snacks before I’d grocery shop for the week,” she says. “I thought, ‘Why isn’t there any app that does this for me?’”

In the first week of Orzechowski’s class, Vennero pitched her idea to potential teammates during a process Orzechowski’s calls “speed networking.”

“Forming teams was completely in the students’ hands,” he says. “They had to pitch their ideas and their skill sets to one another, and make a decision based on where they could add value.”

The objective was to help students build the confidence starting a real business requires, says Orzechowksi, though he admits: “The first couple weeks of the course are like an awkward high-school dance.”

Vennero’s meal-planning app (the name SucSeed would come later) attracted classmate Coope ’17, a business management major, UC hockey player, and CrossFit trainer with a background in nutrition. The duo soon recruited computer science major Westbrook ’20, who was key in developing the technical side of the app.

“We all brought different skills to the table,” says Coope. “We knew that building the right team would be crucial to how the rest of the semester went.”

Though Entrepreneurial Media was first offered at UC in fall 2016, Orzechowski spent several years co-teaching a similar course at Quinnipiac University in Connecticut. The curriculum is fast-paced, and forces students to “solve real problems, rather than deal with hypotheticals from a textbook,” says Orzechowski.

Throughout the course, which is open to all majors, students learn the basics of start-up culture, digital marketing, and entrepreneurship funding, all with the high-stakes presentation looming at the end.

“Students quickly learn that they’re operating without a net,” he says.

Once the team was formed, Vennero, Coope, and Westbrook had little time to get acquainted. Almost immediately, they were required to produce a market analysis, financial statement, and finally, a business plan, which they learned would undergo three revisions before the December presentation.

At the same time, the original idea for the nutrition app began to evolve. With guidance from Orzechowski, the team decided that their product would cater to those with specific food allergies or intolerances.

This added feature would help the app stand out among similar products,

“Students quickly learn that they’re operating without a net,” says Professor Brett Orzechowski

“We went into this not knowing much about start-ups or how entrepreneurship works. Now we’re going to business meetings a few times a week and making decisions about real money.

It’s been a huge transformation.” since the team’s research concluded that people with food restrictions (such as gluten and intolerance, nut allergies, or lactose sensitivity) were largely ignored by the market’s current offerings.

“Professor Orzechowski encouraged us to ask ‘What’s the value we’re bringing with this product?’”

Vennero recalls. “We realized that targeting a niche market would set us apart.”

The next order of business was to refine their marketing pitch—and give their app a name. During one of many late-night meetings in the UC library, Coope remembers brainstorming.

“We were messing around with so many crazy names.

We liked that ‘seed’ sounded healthy and natural, and it just went from there,” says Coope.

“We settled on ‘SucSeed,’ and it just clicked.”

Towards the end of the semester, Orzechowski switched the course’s focus to prepare the students to present the ideas. He brought in communications

professor Carol Downing, who gave the class a crash course in public speaking and evaluated their current pitches.

“I said, ‘Carol, rip them apart,’” Orzechowski recalls.

“At that point in the course, I knew they were prepared to take negative feedback and see it as constructive criticism.”

For Team SucSeed, the lessons were more than constructive. In working with Downing, they learned to simplify their pitch, emphasizing the program’s top features instead of focusing on more technical details. They developed graphics to simulate the actual experience of using the app, which helped make SucSeed’s functionality crystal clear. They succinctly explained the problem with nutrition apps currently on the market and how SucSeed could help fill the void.

In those final weeks, the team’s presentation underwent “constant tweaking,” says Orzechowski. “But you could see their confidence building each time they presented because

they were taking in all the feedback.”

On presentation day, the team was slated to present last. As they watched their competitors present, Westbrook recalls feeling the anticipation build. “I was going through my notecards over and over again,” he says. “But when we got up on stage, it just kind of flowed.”

Coope recalls reading the non-verbal cues of the judges as they explained the prototype. “Lots of head nods and smiles,” she says.

“We felt pretty confident after seeing that.”

Sure enough, after a brief deliberation, the judges announced SucSeed as the first-place winner.

In addition to receiving A’s in the course, shortly after the final presentation, Team SucSeed was approached by a local businessperson with a surprising proposition: a purchase offer.

“This person saw real value in their idea and made a cash offer,” says Orzechowski. “I think their mouths kind of dropped at first, but then they looked at

it from an intelligent, financial perspective.”

After much consideration, the team turned it down.

“We saw more value and potential in SucSeed than what this person was offering,” says Vennero.

“We felt like we could do

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Power Trio: Becky Vennero ’18, Adam Westbrook ’20, Emily Coope ’17

“After the final presentation, Ryan approached us and said ‘If you guys want to pursue this, let’s chat,’” says Coope. The team jumped at the opportunity, and began meeting with Miller at thINCubator on a biweekly basis.

“Working with thINCubator has been awesome,” says Coope. “Ryan connected us with a web developer, and that’s been a huge help.

It’s cool that we’re taken seriously and given the opportunity to see where this can go.”

Agrees Vennero: “We went into this not knowing much about start-ups or how entrepreneurship works,” she says. “Now we’re going to business meetings a few times a week and making decisions about real money.

It’s been a huge transformation.”

more with the idea if we continued to pursue it ourselves.”

And so they have.

On April 1, the team competed in the Mohawk Valley Collegiate Business Plan Competition, where SucSeed earned second

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place in the IT Software category and qualified for state competition in Albany on April 28.

While they didn’t place in States, the team received positive feedback from the judges and their peers, which inspired them to push on. Since early 2017, they’ve

been working to refine SucSeed with Ryan Miller, director of thINCubator in downtown Utica, who served as a judge during the December presentation.

At thINCubator, Miller and his colleagues help aspiring entrepreneurs take their ideas to market.

And for Orzechowski, that’s precisely the point—and why he’s working to establish an entrepreneurship minor at UC. “Entrepreneurship skills are transferable in so many ways,” he says. “Working on a project like this, you see students grow as professionals, and as people. It puts them in a position to realize what they can do.”

Making Headlines Tangerine Editors Look Back

It began as the Utica College Oracle in 1947.

Today, 70 years and a name change later, Utica College’s student newspaper is still keeping the UC community informed —and giving hundreds of budding journalists a voice.

At the helm of each Tangerine staff: The editor-in-chief, whose yearlong tenure comes with endless challenges, choices, and opportunities. For many, it’s a springboard to a career in communications. For others, it’s a first chance to develop a management style. For all, it’s a year of powerful lessons.

Here, editors from 1968 to 2016 reflect on the power of student journalism, the simmering campus controversies they covered, and the headlines they’ll never forget.

Where It Began Former editors recall their paths to the coveted title.

“As a junior, I thought it was time to start adding to the resume a bit. I worked mostly as a features writer for my entire junior year, and stayed with it even though the editors continually

misspelled my first name in my byline.

(When they finally printed a correction of my first name, they misspelled my last name.) I pursued the editor position because I wanted to see if I actually knew what I thought I knew.”

Anthony Ricci, editor-in-chief, 1977-78 “I owe my involvement with the Tangerine to the Harlem Globetrotters.

Honest. I had done a little work for the paper during my freshman year but was an irregular contributor. One night early during my sophomore year, I got a call from a friend who worked at an off-campus sandwich shop on Burrstone Road called Bumpers. He said the shop’s owner had asked him to stay open late that night because the Globetrotters might stop by after their game.

I called a staff photographer and we rushed over. We waited. And waited. My friend gave up and began preparing to shut down the shop. Suddenly, the door flew open and in walked Curly Neal of the Globetrotters. We got the interview.

We got pictures. We may have been amateurs, but Curly was a pro at this.

The editor of the Tangerine, Tony Ricci, loved the story and ran it on the front page. He gave me more assignments, and I was hooked.

By my senior year, I had served in every other editorial position— reporter, editor, assistant editor. I felt I had the necessary experience and qualifications to pursue the editor-inchief job. I also wanted to test myself, to immerse myself further to see if this was something I really wanted to do when I graduated.”

Vernon Hill, editor-in-chief, 1979-80 “I was a journalism student and my neighbor in the dorm was Cory Lavalette ‘99, who was the editor-inchief at the time. He encouraged me to get involved and told me I should apply to be the editor. I was really driven and wanted to take advantage of every opportunity that was afforded to me in college. I knew that being the editor of the Tangerine was going to be a challenge that would make me a better journalist.”

Christina Kunzman, editor-in-chief, 2000-01 “I joined the Tangerine as a reporter during the spring semester of my freshman year. I had a couple of friends who took the practicum the fall before, and they encouraged me to get involved.

I didn’t regret it. I was a reporter, the

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online events reporter, and I think I had a short-lived stint as copy editor, too. I was encouraged by some professors to apply for the editor-in-chief position. I felt prepared as a student journalist to lead the reins of the paper and had the confidence of my peers and administrators. I went up against two very qualified candidates, and the faculty, in the end, chose me. I was humbled and grateful and understood the magnitude of the task ahead of me.”

Christopher Cooper, editor-in-chief, 2010-2012 “Growing up, I always wanted to do something with sports journalism.

When I was a freshman, I had to take journalism as part of my major. I was extremely nervous talking to strangers, so that first year was definitely a different experience for me. But as time went on, I enjoyed it more and more. When our adviser asked me about being the sports editor prior to my junior year, I jumped at it. I could do something I liked and get paid to do it. I couldn’t go wrong.”

Matthew Rogers, co-editor-in-chief, 2015-16 My Biggest Headline From campus upheaval to national tragedy, editors recall the stories that made an impact.

“The major continuing story in 1968 was the possible UC-SUNY merger, which had already been in the wind for three years. It was a challenge to keep up with primary sources, since everyone from Utica Mayor Dominick Assaro to Syracuse University Chancellor William Tolley was involved. The UC Foundation President, at one juncture, announced it was a done deal. The faculty was up in arms; the upperclassmen were worried that their SU diplomas would be in jeopardy. We covered it in every issue from September to March.”

Linda Vaccaro Schmidt, editor-in-chief, 1968-69

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“After the Kent State shooting in May 1970, a student-led movement at Utica College called for a shutdown of the school. I was not an impartial observer and journalist, but was actively anti-war and used my position to promote the shutdown.

By that time, opposition to the war was the consensus among students and faculty, so the story was well received. Looking back, I suppose I would have qualms about being an advocate and tried to be more of an objective reporter. But it was a very polarized time, much like it is again now. Still, it was exciting to be given a voice during such a turbulent time.”

Paul Lomeo, co-editor-in-chief, 1969-70 “The big news at the time was the attempt to co-locate the now-SUNY Poly campus on the grounds of UC. The issue was rife with controversy with many for, more against. The sentiment among students was definitely against; the feeling was that the co-location would diminish UC’s small footprint and big college charm. At that time, the Tangerine was put to bed on a Tuesday afternoon and distributed on a Friday morning. Calling a Thursday afternoon Town Hall with then-UC president Thomas Sheldon was a direct effort by the school administration, we thought, to manage the news and throw some cold water on a hot-button issue, since our story would be old news by the time we went to press again a week later. So, we blocked out the rest of the paper and got it to the printer with a hole on the front page for the co-location story. I drove the story to our printer that evening and picked up the papers for distribution early Friday morning.

Before then, I don’t ever recall a Friday Tangerine with reference to a news event that happened the day before.”

Anthony Ricci, editor-in-chief, 1977-78 “I remember watching the first tower fall on that sunny Tuesday morning in September 2001. A large group of

students was gathered around the television in Strebel Student Center, and no one was really saying much.

Complete shock was in the air. After the second tower fell, our editorial group pulled together and we thought about putting off our first issue, which was supposed to go to the printer the next day. That decision was quickly crushed. We had decided that this was news and that the issue had to be published. My staff was amazing, and we covered the attacks in that week’s issue and a few other issues, as well. To ignore what had happened would have been a blemish on the Tangerine and a disservice to the people affected.”

Nick Angelides, editor-in-chief, 2001-02 “During homecoming weekend 2011, an RA in North Hall was called a racial slur by a resident. I witnessed the incident, and the victim was my friend. That Monday, the Tangerine was copied on an email from the R.A. reporting the incident to President Hutton, the dean of students, members of the Student Senate, and the VP of student affairs. We immediately knew we had to cover the story in that week’s issue, but we also understood the sensitivity required. Most importantly, we had to cover the story without my byline since I was now a part of the news. I met with Managing Editor Alissa Scott and Advisor Patty Louise and decided that we would have our top writers manage the story, and I would write a frontpage editorial.

That week’s paper had at least six pieces about the incident, including some letters to the editor. We were also able to speak with other students who shared their stories of racism on campus. Thanks to our coverage, the incident sparked a campus-wide conversation about race relations at UC.” Christopher Cooper, editor-in-chief, 2010-12

“There was a lot of big news the year I was editor: the tuition reset, construction of ‘the Hutt,’ the Welcome Center, the new Brvenik Center downtown. But the presidential search was the biggest story for us. President Hutton had been around for 18 years, so turnover in that position was obviously something that campus wasn’t used to. We covered the search as a series that spanned over multiple issues.

Sometimes, as a school newspaper, you can get caught up writing stories on insignificant things, so it was amazing to be giving better coverage than the local news outlets were on the presidential search.”

Matthew Rogers, co-editor-in-chief, 2015-16 Outside the ‘UC Bubble’ Covering the “real world” from a Pioneer’s perspective.

“There was campus and societal unrest going on all across the country in the late 60s. Our little corner of upstate New York was not immune.”

Linda Vaccaro Schmidt, editor-in-chief, 1968-69 “It was the late 1960s, so everything was touched by the Vietnam War, the Civil Rights movement, women’s rights, recreational drugs, rock music, and the sexual revolution. There were real divisions within and between students and faculty, and to some degree, between commuters and residents. The locals tended to be more conservative. When I started college, most all my friends were locals. But by my senior year, that had changed.”

Paul Lomeo, co-editor-in-chief, 1969-70 “The two biggest ‘real world’ events during my time at Utica College were at opposite ends of the spectrum.

One was the ‘Miracle on Ice,’ when the U.S. men’s Olympic ice hockey team

won the gold medal at Lake Placid in 1980. The second event was the Iranian hostage crisis. I remember most students being patriotic in their views.

But I also remember others saying that the U.S. largely was responsible for the circumstances that led to the crisis. It was an eye-opening moment for me to realize that ‘my’ generation could be splintered on a major political issue.

We had practical limitations, though.

As a weekly newspaper that went to press on Wednesday and was distributed Thursday evening, it was unrealistic for us to give much coverage to ‘real world’ stories that changed from day-to-day. This reinforced the notion that, as college students, we were mostly insulated from the world at large. Man, we were lucky.”

Vernon Hill, editor-in-chief, 1979-80 Making Waves: Controversial Coverage Thanks to opinionated writers and an engaged student body, controversy often followed the Tangerine’s biggest stories.

“We had controversy over several issues, including the potential state takeover of UC, the role of students in decision-making, an occupation of the computer center by members of the Black Coalition, and an active chapter of Students for a Democratic Society.

But my most controversial editorial involved the then-simmering unrest among dorm students and my opinion of the management of the dorms.

There was an ad hoc committee on dorms and lots of agitating for change at the time. I think Ray Simon probably had to defend the freedom of the press after one particular editorial I wrote on the issue.”

Linda Vaccaro Schmidt, editor-in-chief, 1968-69

“I wrote an anti-war editorial headlined ‘Hell No, I Won’t Go.’ Since we had co-editors, editorials were by-lined with the writer’s name at the end of the piece. The piece ran long, so my name was just lopped off by accident.

Since this screed was written in the first person, it didn’t look good that the author remained anonymous.”

Paul Lomeo, co-editor-in-chief, 1969-70 “I had a friend who was a recent UC grad who was working at a local newspaper. When I became editor, I asked him to write an occasional column because I thought he had a unique take on things, a nice writing style, and would give the paper an insight into the ‘real world.’ After three or four columns, I got two calls—one from the writer who said his job was being threatened if he continued writing the column, and another from the publisher of the local newspaper who said he ‘should not have to compete’ with a professional writer submitting columns to my paper. Naturally, we had to stop the column for fear of my friend losing his job, but I was astounded to think that a newspaper publisher would consider the Tangerine his competition. I thanked him for reading our paper.”

Anthony Ricci, editor-in-chief, 1977-78 “We relied on advertisements to keep our paper operating, and SUNY Institute contacted us about running an ad for their open house. Other colleges had advertised in the college’s publication in the past, and we felt it was an acceptable practice. We never expected it to be controversial. When President Hutton attacked us in an email, we took it as an act of censorship and published his letter alongside one of our editorials. We even covered the event as a news piece, as well.”

Nick Angelides, editor-in-chief, 2001-02

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“Some of my favorite pieces to cover were the ones that focused on campus growth. I loved seeing Utica College define what type of institute it wanted to be.”

Nick Angelides, editor-in-chief, 2001-02

Tedious Technology: The Evolution of the Publishing Process Before “copy and paste” meant two clicks of the mouse, editors logged thousands of hours going to press the old-fashioned way.

“Oh, boy. It’s hard to describe to anyone in 2017 that we typed out the stories on typewriters, then we spec’d the copy (specified, as in noting what typeface and size, depending on copy length, for each story), then we drew a full-size mockup of each page. When we closed each issue, usually late on Wednesday night, I would drive the whole envelope of paper over to Spadafora Brothers print shop in Rome and leave it by the front door. Sometimes that could be a harrowing drive in my VW on ice and snow. On Friday morning they delivered the final product, tabloid-sized, on newsprint. Whew!”

Linda Vaccaro Schmidt, editor-in-chief, 1968-69 “Back then, we used manual typewriters with a few IBM Selectrics to write our stories. The Associated Press Stylebook was our bible. The long hours put in each week by a handful of students in order to publish a weekly newspaper 26 times a school year was intense, particularly given the technology back then. It was literally driving back and forth with copy—no fax, no Internet.”

Jacqueline LaChance McKeon, editorin-chief, 1983-84 “We used a really old Mac with Quark.

Eventually we got a second computer

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from the Ray Simon Institute and were thrilled. We were right on the cusp of using digital pictures, but most of our photos had to be developed from film and scanned in. The computers were always crashing. I remember one night when the weekly issue was almost complete and the computer crashed without saving our edits. We were up until 2 a.m. trying to get the paper out.”

Christina Kunzman, editor-in-chief, 2000-01

tives, even though it was maddening to learn there was no single ‘villain.’

Another story involved a non-student from off-campus who was harassing female students. When I learned a friend was among the victims of the harassment (nothing physical, just bizarre, stalking type of behavior), it reinforced how important it was for the Tangerine to reflect what was happening to students in their everyday lives.”

Vernon Hill, editor-in-chief, 1979-80

“This was the year we really got our online presence going. Nick Souza ‘16 spearheaded that effort. Our website started to run all of our stories and had additional photos. The most time-consuming part of the process was probably designing what the paper actually looked like. We were so lucky we found Courteney Klepfer ‘16, who was amazing with Adobe InDesign, the program we used to design the paper.

She made everybody’s job so much easier and helped complete the design revamp that we had been trying to do.

We all worked together, and it was a good time.”

Matthew Rogers, co-editor-in-chief, 2015-16

“I enjoyed finding stories that hadn’t been told. As a young idealistic journalist, I wanted to make a mark and try to investigate stories and issues around campus that probably made a lot of headaches for the administration. Looking back, I am so thankful to the advisor at the time, Kim Landon, who supported me even though it probably made her job very difficult.”

Christina Kunzman, editor-in-chief, 2000-01

Passion Projects Editors on the stories they loved most.

“I remember writing about why textbooks cost so much and were often late in arriving at the bookstore.

Everyone involved was quick to blame everyone else, which helped me to view issues from different perspec-

“Some of my favorite pieces to cover were the ones that focused on campus growth. I loved seeing Utica College define what type of institute it wanted to be. Although UC was an affiliate of Syracuse University, President Todd Hutton was determined to leave his mark and make a name and identity for UC. During my time there, our sports program had grown, two new dorms were completed with a third one on its way, and our involvement in the community was growing.”

Nick Angelides, editor-in-chief, 2001-02

“My favorite story to work on was when UC’s dining services provider, Aramark, and UC cut ties after 32 years during the 2010-2011 winter break.

Aramark was always under criticism about the quality of service, so while we knew that this split was inevitable, we didn’t know it would happen in the middle of the academic year. We reported the story from every angle, from a long and open interview with President Hutton, to former employees of Aramark and future employees of Sodexo, to student reactions. One thing was clear: Everyone was excited to welcome Sodexo with open arms.”

Christopher Cooper, editor-in-chief, 2010-12

How each editor changed the paper’s direction and left his or her mark.

for the College, and we were going to cover the news whether it was favorable or not. When I came onboard, many of the previous section editors had graduated. This left me to look outside of the college’s journalism major to fill editorial roles. I think this made for a more well-rounded paper and brought new stories and material to the surface. We did not believe in sugarcoating anything, and that may have been a change for some of the college administration to accept. We pushed to cover more stories per issue, which meant going from an eight-page layout to a 12-page one. I did not like ‘off the record’ statements, and I would work hard on having sources trust me so that they would comment on the next piece that I needed help with.”

Nick Angelides, editor-in-chief, 2001-02

“I wanted to shake things up a bit. I wanted to see how different things would look in terms of graphic design.

I added a column with capsules of news events happening off campus (we cleverly called it ‘Off Campus’).

We added a ‘Personals’ page. I wanted it to be a little more Village Voice, as befitting my vantage point as a 21-year old journalism major growing up in the age of Watergate.”

Anthony Ricci, editor-in-chief, 1977-78

“Our philosophy was to cover campus news exclusively. We didn’t want to get into national politics or sports, because our readers can go anywhere else to get that. Even if we found ourselves writing about things as simple as the cafeteria changing hours or a new major, we owned it. We wanted to produce something that our readers couldn’t get anywhere else. ” Matthew Rogers, co-editor-in-chief, 2015-16

My Philosophy as Editor

“I guided the staff to do our best to report what was happening on campus.

This meant a fair representation of all sides of the story. Looking back, I wish that we had dug deeper for some in-depth reporting. At the same time, we did not have either the experience or the resources. More effort could have been made into this area, and that’s my shortcoming. We were so busy with day-to-day operations that it was difficult to see the big picture. This was another lesson because it happens in the professional world, too.”

Vernon Hill, editor-in-chief, 1979-80 “My editorial philosophy was simple: We were not a public relations tool

The Powers that Be How the Tangerine editor’s relationship with UC Administration affected reporting — or not.

“The Tangerine was an outspoken critic of the administration on almost every front. It was pretty much a sign of the times that if you were a college student, you didn’t agree with anyone in a position of authority. I did try to give positive editorial support to those administrators and faculty whom I felt were listening to the students and responding to their concerns.”

Linda Vaccaro Schmidt, editor-in-chief, 1968-69

“As young journalists, it would have been ‘fun’ to cause a little trouble now and then, and it occasionally happened.

One time, a college administrator demanded to see my story before I submitted it to my editors. Just to see what would happen, I showed it to her.

She marked up the pages to change the story to suit her point of view. I ignored her ‘suggestions,’ submitting the original story exactly as I had written it and my editor ran it that way.

At the time, I thought I was teaching her a lesson about not being able to push us around.

Vernon Hill, editor-in-chief, 1979-80 “The relationship with the administration was tumultuous, and now as a public relations practitioner at a school district, I can see what a giant pain we were. We were always trying to ‘break’ a story about some injustice.”

Christina Kunzman, editor-in-chief, 2000-01 “The administration trusted us and knew that we were going to get the story straight, and when we didn’t, they knew that we would be quick to correct ourselves. And because I was editor for two consecutive years, I was able to build the trust and confidence of President Hutton’s administration.”

Christopher Cooper, editor-in-chief, 2010-12 Lessons Learned Seek the truth, be aggressive, and adapt to change. Former editors share advice for today’s Tangerine staff.

“Be very aggressive, because opportunities are limited. Take heart in the fact that the skills you may learn in entrylevel journalism jobs can be transferred to other more secure work.”

Paul Lomeo, editor-in-chief, 1969-70 “Always seek the truth because not everyone tells the truth. Don’t be afraid to make mistakes, because everyone makes mistakes. Just don’t be so hardheaded that you prevent yourself

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from learning from those mistakes.

Journalism, through social media, speaks a different language from the journalism I grew up with, so my advice would sound like apples while everyone else is speaking oranges.

But, that being said: Learn to spell.

Learn the rules of grammar. Read the Elements of Style by E.B. White.”

Anthony Ricci, editor-in-chief, 1977-78 “You need that thick skin, for one. For another, journalism has a future. Just as it turned out for me not to be a lifetime of writing stories on typewriters, people must adapt to change. At the same time, journalism still needs dedicated people who can report, edit and present the news in a way that is meaningful to readers. Whether for a newspaper or a website or whatever the future brings, that will never change.

Vernon Hill, editor-in-chief, 1979-80 “Push yourselves to become better journalists who tell fair and balanced stories. If you really believe in what you are doing and the story you are telling, don’t be afraid to make waves, but be willing to take responsibility for your actions and apologize for mistakes.”

Christina Kunzman, editor-in-chief, 2000-01 “Push for the truth, and follow up on that truth. As student journalists, we are in a position to truly make change.”

Christopher Cooper, editor-in-chief, 2010-12 “Be open-minded and don’t accept ‘no’ as an answer. You owe it to yourself and the campus community to report the news—even the unfavorable news.”

Nick Angelides, editor-in-chief, 2001-02 “Continue to raise the bar. The newspaper can get better and better each year, and with technology these days, the potential is limitless. Continue to ask questions about anything and everything.”

Matthew Rogers, editor-in-chief, 2015-16

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Where Are They Now? Linda Vaccaro Schmidt ’69 is retired after a long career in marketing communications and public relations, including positions with Turner Broadcasting and Cox Communications. She also owned her own freelance communications company for 17 years. Linda has two daughters and lives in Atlanta.

Paul Lomeo ’70 is a lifelong Utica resident. After graduation, he worked in a variety of roles with Utica newspapers for nearly a decade. Later, he did communications and public affairs work for Planned Parenthood, the regional labor union, and Zogby International. Paul retired in 2008. He and his wife have three sons.

Anthony Ricci ’78 is retired after 36 years in Oneida County government.

He’s married with two daughters and lives in Utica.

Vernon Hill ’80 has been in the newspaper business for more than three decades. Since 1988, he’s worked for the Springfield Republican in Springfield, Massachusetts, most recently as assistant managing editor. He lives in South Hadley, Massachusetts, and enjoys spending time with friends.

Jacqueline LaChance McKeon ’84 has worked as a freelance writer since 1989.

After graduating from UC, she spent more than a decade as a newspaper reporter and editor. Today she serves as community relations assistant for Camphill Ghent retirement community and is a contributing writer for the The Chatham Press in Chatham, New York.

Christina Kunzman ’01 enlisted in the United States Army as a broadcast journalist shortly after graduating

from UC. She covered Operation Iraqi Freedom in Baghdad and was the editor of the Army’s weekly paper and producer of the weekly television program, which went on to win the Keith L. Ware award for Best News Program in the Army and the Thomas Edison award for Best Program in the Department of Defense. Christina now works as a public information officer for the Binghamton City School District and lives in Endwell, New York, with her husband, Darren, and daughter, Madison, 5.

Nick Angelides ’02 lives in Portland, Maine, with wife, Stephanie, and sons Dru and Jacob. He has worked as a reporter and photographer for the Sun Journal and L/A Magazine. He’s currently an application engineer and one of Maine’s premiere wedding photographers.

Christopher Cooper ’12 is Community Relations Coordinator for Success Academy Charter Schools in Brooklyn.

Previously, he worked as a journalist and researcher for Euromoney Institutional Investor, where he reported on Latin America’s legal markets and interviewed several high-profile figures including Mexico’s Energy Secretary Pedro Joaquín Coldwell. He lives in Brooklyn.

Matthew Rogers ’16 is a coach for the Utica College football team and a master’s student in UC’s liberal studies program. He lives in Utica and still reads the Tangerine every week.

In Memoriam Professor Marijean Levering, Ph.D. 1974 - 2017 On June 27, 2017, beloved Utica College theatre professor Marijean Levering passed away after a long battle with cancer—a fight she faced with strength, grace, and her signature dark humor.

Levering joined UC’s faculty in August 2000 as an Assistant Professor of Theatre and was promoted to Associate Professor of Theatre in 2006. For her devotion to students, she received the Robert Woods Student Life Award in 2004, and in May 2017, the Dr. Virgil Crisafulli Distinguished Teaching Award. Under her direction, UC’s theatre program flourished and became a close-knit family, with Levering serving as “mother” to hundreds of students, both onstage and off.

On September 9, many of those students. along with colleagues and friends, gathered to celebrate Levering’s life through stories, lessons, and laughs. At the memorial, two of her closest friends and former students, Alex Caldas ’13 and William Lanfear ’10, shared the following remarks about their “mother,” Marijean.

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We are Her Legacy

By Alex Caldas ‘13

I’m not sure if she ever knew it, but the first time I met Marijean Levering, I was absolutely terrified.

This woman was my exact height, but her stride was probably twice mine. The woman walked with an intense purpose. It was the first night of auditions for the spring production during my freshman year. I know you’ll be shocked to hear it was a dark comedy.

As my fear piqued, I noticed Marijean was wearing a Muppets T-shirt. The Muppets and theatre are a few of my favorite things.

It was a hard enough sell to stay. And I’m so thankful that I did.

Marijean became my boss and mentor. One semester on the stage crew turned into three years of stage management. I became her right-hand woman and through a lot of trial

and error, she taught me to be ready for damn near anything … even, and especially when, I really didn’t think I could be. Her strength in the face of any problem, big or small, made me want to be better. And before I knew it, she was the mother I always wanted.

When I was growing up, no older than kindergarten-aged, I was watching Jim Henson’s Labyrinth.

I laughed wildly as bird creatures removed, juggled and exchanged heads.

My mother jokingly asked whose child I was; puppet decapitation has never been her idea of a good time.

Queue my sophomore year of college. It was the end of a play, and Marijean handed me some props to put away.

“Put this over there,” she said, handing me some nondescript items and Marijean-power walking away.

She didn’t say what it was or where it was she actually wanted me to put them, but I somehow knew exactly what she meant. I smiled to myself, noting she had been wearing another Muppets T-shirt. I was starting to get an idea of whose kid I was.

Marijean and I worked together on more and more shows and she shifted from professor and mentor to friend. During summers when I wanted to get away from home, she would offer her couch to crash on.

We’d watch The Muppet Christmas Carol in July, eat Peking Tokyo, and talk about silly things for hours.

Really bad movies. Funny things that happened with strangers. The power of Dionysus. Lots of laughs were had.

Then she got sick for the first time. After she went in for a surgery, I left a series of notes leading her to roses that Will, Sarah and I went in for spread across her house; at this point I had been entrusted with a set of “just in case something happens” keys. I left a rose and a card with the “Labyrinth” story, about her being my “real” mother, in the fridge.

I’m so thankful she knew that I thought of her as a mother, but I didn’t have to tell her that for her to know.

She definitely already knew.

There are a number of people in this room who

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were her kids. She loved teaching and she loved fauxadopting us. She’d regularly say, “Unlike most parents, I get to pick my children.”

Many of you actually called her “mom.” Some of you had another name for it.

Maybe you just called her Marijean, but the sentiment was still there. If you did plays or worked on projects with her, it was hard not to feel that way. She cared for her students so much and her passion for teaching ran deep.

She cared for a took care of me when I couldn’t ask for help; asking for help would end up being a huge skill she taught me. One spring break, my family was displaced due to a fire.

Instead of being stressed out and needing to ask for a place to go, Marijean planned a trip to Chicago.

Will, Lamont and I had the trip of a lifetime, though I had largely been tasked with making sure the boys behaved. I was so happy for someone who felt like they had lost everything.

Marijean was always cognizant of what problems others were dealing with, even when hers were worse. When she was told her time was limited, it was understandably difficult to talk about. Even then, others came first. She sent me an email, apologizing for dying.

She said, “I am so, so sorry. I know you are plenty strong to get through this. I really do, but I feel like I’m abandoning you.” There was no planning of an extravagant, expensive farewell tour.

She was too busy worrying about us, the people she was leaving behind.

afternoon is that Marijean said her students are her legacy. I know I keep talking about myself up here, but it’s so important to me that all her former students know this: We are her legacy.

She deteriorated fairly quickly after this, but she spent the last of her time in true Marijean fashion: Directing the last act. Where will the props go? Where will the final scene be set?

During this time, she was able to get a few precious goodbyes in. One afternoon, I sat with her and Fran Lucia. Marijean held Fran.

We all took turns crying.

Obviously. But what stood out most to me about that

On the legacy-building front, I’ve got a pretty tall glass to fill. But whether or not world domination is your end game, all the small things you do toward accomplishing your goals, all the small Marijean-ish actions you take, are feeding that legacy.

When I graduated, she gave me a card that said, “You are very much my friend, but as much as it is possible for anyone to be, you are also my child. I am ridiculously proud of you, and I am so lucky that you decided to wander into my life. … You will take over the world.

When and how might not be known, but that you will is not in doubt.”

Whenever you organize something, look at it and say, “Wow. This is excessively organized,” you are feeding the legacy.

Whenever you mentor an intern, a student or a younger colleague, the legacy grows. Whenever an intern, a student or a younger colleague is afraid to give a presentation and you tell them not to fear and that you are prepared to threateningly display a pair of pliers, you are definitely fueling the legacy.

There are folks here in FX makeup, costuming, acting, comics, teaching, government, forensics.

We’re everywhere and we’re all using things we learned from Marijean. And that’s legacy building, too.

Current students, you keep that legacy alive, well and weird here every day and on behalf of alumni, I want to thank you for that.

So, everyone. Allow yourself some time to grieve. Let yourself be sad sometimes.

But know when you’re done with your gross tissue, the show must go on. She pretty much said we have to. Legacies don’t build themselves.

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A Director, Through and Through

By William Lanfear ’10

I would like to start with a line from “As You Like It,” Act II, Scene 7.

All the world’s a stage, a nd all the men and women merely players; they have their exits and their entrances, and one man in his lifetime plays many parts.

I can’t begin to tell you just how much I loathe William Shakespeare. Sorry to all of you who teach, and to those who have to learn about him, but I do. But his words ring true.

We are here today not to mourn the loss of Marijean, but to celebrate the life of someone who had such an influence on so many people. Her work not only

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revolved around directing people to their exits and entrances, but how to look at the world as one big, theatrical experience.

She loved teaching students.

Actually, I can’t even say just students because she loved teaching everyone. Every moment was a teachable moment for her. She was always teaching, always learning, and always had a story to accompany every topic. “If we look back to ancient Greece and their annual festival of Dionysus, the origins of theatre can be summed up in four words: goat sacrifices, wine, and orgies.” We could never figure out why more people didn’t want to learn about theatre!

She taught people how to find their place both on the stage and in the world.

She taught people how to find their light, even if she was never one for the spotlight herself. She didn’t even like having her photo taken. There’s one photo that epitomizes this: It was during the show Rumors.

She saw the camera and started booking it offstage.

In the resulting photo, a portion of her leg is missing because she started moving so quickly to get away. Most everyone who ever tried to sneak a photo of her got that blurry result.

We’d joke with her about having an aging portrait in her attic like Dorian Gray, or following the bathing and

“She taught people how to find their place both on the stage and in the world.”

beauty rituals of Countess Elizabeth Bathory to stay young. She was really only 43, which seems unbelievable since she had the in-depth knowledge, insight, life experience and stories—so many stories—of someone at least six times her age. (That’s 258 years, for anybody keeping track.)

much went from student to teacher. We’d get together and I’d teach her everything I had learned that week. It was the ultimate hands-on learning experience, and she discovered in me not only a talent, but also how I best learn a subject. I wasn’t learning to teach, I was teaching to learn.

It didn’t really hit me until last week that I’m the age now that she was when our paths collided back in 2005.

When we met I instantly knew there was something about her that fascinated me. I came from a high school that lacked theatrical opportunities, and she had the knowledge and desire to start mentoring me in the world of theatre, especially makeup. We’d meet up in the evenings once a week for impromptu makeup jam sessions. To onlookers, they likely resembled the song “Anything You Can Do, I Can Do Better.” I’d show off a makeup job and if she could show me how to do it better, she would.

If she couldn’t, I’d show her how I did it. In between our meetings, I’d go to the library and absorb everything I could on techniques and products. After the first couple months, I pretty

Some of my fondest memories of Marijean and I are in the old dressing room, sitting on the counter side-by-side, doing makeup on the actors in her shows, using the backs of each other’s hands as makeup palettes.

I owe everything I am to her. She found the spark in me that I had been missing, a talent that she nurtured into what I now call my career. Having her working beside me for the National Center for Security and Preparedness was truly a dream come true. Having her acting expertise, her makeup skills, her flair for organization, and that window-shattering voice of hers by my side—I felt invincible.

We shared a love of food, art, and medical oddities. On work excursions, we’d stay up late talking about future

Efforts are underway to establish a memorial fund in Professor Levering’s honor. To learn more or to donate, contact George Nehme, vice president for advancement, genehme@utica.edu, (315) 792-3219.

travel plans, new recipes she wanted to try (usually involving bacon), and the plays she was reading while brainstorming the best ways to stage the scenes of gore and mayhem in front of an audience.

She was a director through and through and always needed to be in charge of whatever she could, especially when it came to herself. With her initial cancer diagnosis, after her treatments, it didn’t take long before she started losing her hair. It was January 18, 2011, when she bribed me with dinner to come over and shave her head. I knew how much she loved her hair and how much it was part of her identity, and she could probably tell from my voice that I was apprehensive—until she mentioned that she made mac and cheese. I left my

apartment so fast I almost forgot my clippers.

I shaved a mohawk into her head and gelled it (all her idea). It lasted until our laughter subsided, and I shaved it off. We spent the rest of the night laughing and eating. When it came to her cooking, I discovered there wasn’t much I wasn’t willing to do for food.

I have been forever changed because of the influence this amazing woman had on me, the paths in life she helped me choose, and the guidance she provided over the years. I know she’s watching me, helping me, and continuing to guide me.

I want to end with a quote that Marijean and I would say to each other as needed, during shows and at the training center when we were given an impossible task to complete in an even more impossible timeframe:

“Everything will be fine, because it has to be.”

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GIVING OPPORTUNITY: Sharon McEwan ’64 has fond memories of her time at UC— most notably, the evening anatomy course on Plant Street, part of UC’s former Oneida Square campus, where she met her late husband, Robert.

“He was an adult learner, and I was a full scholarship student,” she says. “We made some wonderful memories at Utica College.”

Today, McEwan, a retired teacher, loves returning to her alma mater—a place substantially different from the campus she recalls.

“I enjoy seeing how UC has changed over the years,” she says.

“It’s wonderful to see the growth.”

By her participation in Planned Giving, McEwan hopes to honor her husband’s memory, and give students the same opportunities that scholarships afforded her.

“I know how much financial support can mean to students who have very little.”

Learn more about Planned Giving opportunities at Utica COllege. Call 1-800-456-8278 today.

HERITAGE SOCIETY

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ALUMNI NEWS

Voices for Change

“It is your legacy, who were you forged from, how you navigate the benefits and reconstruct the ill-aligned narratives that will move you from victim to activist.”

“Change began very, very slowly. But it did begin.”

“For us, it was about understanding the ebb and flow of how you survive in this environment to get your degree.”

Ronald Spratling ’71

Oliver Perry ’74

Janice Miles ’74

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As part of UC’s two-weeklong celebration of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in January, Ronald Spratling ’71, Janice Miles ’74, and Oliver Perry ’74, returned to campus—some for the first time since graduation—to reflect on one of the most pivotal eras in UC history.

Before a crowd of UC students, faculty, and staff, the alumni discussed the culture of activism at UC in the late 1960s and early 1970s, the creation of the Black Student Union, and how their fight helped shape Utica College—and vice versa. “We broke the ground for further movement toward a college that was sensitive to the vital needs of its students,” Perry told the audience. “In turn, I sincerely hope we have proven to the College that their investment in us was worthwhile.”

Here, Perry reflects on his journey.

When Oliver Perry arrived at Utica College in the fall of 1969, he didn’t exactly feel at home.

For the first time in his life, Perry, who grew up in the Bronx, was surrounded by predominately “middle-class white people,” he remembers.

Everything from the plays put on by the theatre department to the songs on the Pioneer Pub jukebox (no R&B, but lots of Beach Boys) seemed out of touch with his own life experience.

“I felt the climate wasn’t necessarily inclusive,” says Perry.

And it wasn’t long before he learned that other black students felt the same way—

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and had been fighting for change for years.

In the fall of 1966, a group of 20 black students came together to form United Students. Its mission: “to inform both black and white students of the Negro in this society and, hopefully, promote more humanitarian attitudes toward the Negro in America.”

Over the course of two years, the group grew and became more visible on campus while developing a progressive list of demands: install a lecture series for prominent black speakers, create courses on black history and achievement, establish a black cultural center on campus, and make a more concerted effort to recruit minority students, to name a few.

“During the past three years, several black students have left Utica College because the educational system has been grossly delinquent in responding to the modern needs of the minority students,” their proposal began.

While some of the demands were met, others had been ignored by college administration, prompting six students representing the newly named Black Students Union to stage a

historic sit-in in a campus computer lab. Because of their efforts, an agreement was finally reached with then-president Dr. J. Kenneth Donahue.

That was May 1969.

The dust had barely settled when Oliver Perry arrived on campus later that year, and he quickly joined the movement. He was elected the BSU’s minister of defense in fall 1970, one of six leaders (including minster of culture Janice Miles ’74) responsible for branches of the organization. He became one of the most vocal members, often serving as the BSU’s representative in meetings with administration.

He organized discussions, where all students were invited to share their opinions on what changes still needed to be made.

“There was some pushback.

There were people who felt they were losing their sense of belonging as [the BSU] became more powerful on campus,” Perry says now.

“My guiding principle was that everyone had a right to be at UC and everyone had a right to be heard.”

In the spring of 1971, Perry helped established UC’s first Black Cultural Weekend, an event that brought more than 100

black high-school students, along with prominent black speakers, playwrights, poets and musicians, to campus. With Perry and Miles at the helm, the BSU became one of the most active and visible student groups at Utica College.

After graduating from UC in 1974 with a degree in behavioral science, Perry went on to earn his masters at Antioch University.

His career path echoes his beginnings at Utica College; he’s spent decades working with youth cultural programs and non-profits in New York City. Today, he’s deputy executive director of Urban Hope NYC, a community organization that creates summer camps, after-school programs, and basketball leagues for at-risk kids and teens.

Looking back now, Perry’s memories of that time at UC are largely positive. The faculty and administration, he says, “recognized the value in what we were trying to accomplish.”

And learning to advocate for himself and his peers planted a seed in Perry, he says. “I learned how to represent myself and stand up for others,” he says. “It began the growth process that led me down the path that built my career.”

ALUMNI NEWS

Then and Now New buildings, more sports teams, a Dome— there’s no question student life at Utica College has changed in the past 13 years. But we didn’t realize just how much until we asked two alumni, Eric Ozanam ’00, ’03 and Angela Malaspina ’16, to compare their favorite memories (and favorite pizza joints) from their UC days: Best way to spend a weekend night Eric: My senior year I lived above O’Donnell’s on Varick Street, so we just went downstairs to hang.

Angela: Going out with friends on Varick Street.

Late-night spot where you were sure to find other UC students Eric: A bar owned by a fine gentleman named Albie.

Angela: The Harp. Best deals on Utica Clubs!

Movie that most reflects your UC experience Eric: Dazed and Confused. It was the only VHS tape we had at the Crow house, and it played on a loop for at least two semesters.

Angela: Where the Wild Things Are — based solely on the title.

Campus social event you and your friends never missed Eric: Air Band, Greek Week, and Senior Crystal Ball.

Angela: That’s a tie between Midnight Breakfast and Air Band.

Song that was guaranteed to get UC students on the dance floor Eric: “Put Your Hands Where My Eyes Can See” by Busta Rhymes Angela: “One Dance” by Drake Favorite takeout spot Eric: Pizza Pad. That pizzeria kept me alive during college.

$1 dollar slices and open until 3 a.m.—the owner had my demographic nailed.

I still know their phone number by heart.

Angela: Lukin’s. Best pizza in Utica!

Favorite piece of dorm décor Eric: A massive Bob Marley tapestry. Later in my college career, I had a poster with a beautiful blonde woman on my wall until my own beautiful blonde woman, Amanda Price Ozanam ’04, made it “disappear” one day.

Angela: Pictures of family and friends.

Items you’d find in most UC dorm rooms Eric: A black light, a Nirvana poster, and a million Absolut Vodka ads.

Angela: UC posters and banners.

Professor everyone agreed was “cool” Eric: Professor Carol

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Downing, no doubt about it. Top honors also went to Professors Janda and Landon.

Angela: Dr. Thomas Rossi.

He was my mentor. We still keep in touch!

Most UC students thought the college president was …

Eric: My first interaction with President Hutton was during Alpha Chi Rho’s Deep Freeze for Cancer. It was about 20 degrees out and he walked across the snow in wingtips and a full suit.

He introduced himself, gave us a generous donation, and then offered to buy me a coffee inside.

Angela: A local celebrity. It was always a treat to see President Hutton around campus.

My three most essential school supplies Eric: A backpack, a pen, and a notebook. Fourth item was a lighter.

Angela: My planner, my laptop, and a large coffee.

Elective that filled up first on registration day Eric: Human Sexuality with Professor Gotwald.

Angela: Human Sexuality with Professor Provost.

Best way to exercise on campus Eric: Running from Campus Safety. Just kidding! I played soccer for UC. Angela: Waking up five minutes before class in the ECJS building. SPRINT! Phrase you repeated most often during your college years Eric: “We’re having people

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over, come hang out.”

Angela: “I have no money.”

Favorite end-of-the-year tradition Eric: Fraternity and sorority semi-formals.

Angela: Moose-a-Palooza.

Bouncy houses and fun on the quad!

How you communicated with your parents Eric: Calls on Sunday afternoons. We mostly used calling cards to call long distance.

Angela: Mostly over text a few times a week.

Best way to kill time between classes Eric: Hanging in Strebel Lounge. I spent time destroying all kinds of people at foosball.

Angela: Meeting up with friends at any lounge around campus.

If this piece of electronic equipment broke, your life was pretty much over Eric: I was the first person I knew on campus to have a cell phone in ’99. That thing was solid.

Angela: Hands down, my laptop.

Typical outfit for early morning classes Eric: Jeans and a Polo something.

Angela: Leggings and a sweatshirt.

Footwear you wore most often Eric: Shell-toe Adidas and Doc Martens.

Angela: Rain boots. #CentralNewYork

Favorite piece of UC gear Eric: I had quite a few amazing UC jackets that were very unique and often loaned to (stolen by) my best friends.

Angela: My Utica College grey crewneck sweatshirt. I got it my freshman year. It’s hanging on by a thread but I’ll never get rid of it!

Where are they now?

Eric: Life is great! I’m married to my college sweetheart, Amanda Price Ozanam ‘04. We have two kiddos: Xavier, 7, and Isaac, 4, who keep us on our toes.

Amanda and I both work at

the Air Force Research Labs (AFRL) in Rome, New York.

We live in New Hartford, New York. When people ask me where I grew up, I say “Utica College.” My college experience helped transform me into the man I am now.

Angela: Since graduation in May 2016, I have been working towards my MBA through Utica College’s online program. I am currently working as a human resource coordinator for Arch Capital Services in White Plains, New York. My time at Utica College flew by, and I often think about what a great experience it was. I miss it!

ADVANCEMENT UPDATES

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3 (1) The Frank E. Gannett Journalism Awards, Juwan Wilson ’17, Michele Howgate, Dave Dudajek, Marissa Filletti ’18; (2) The John F. Jasinski Scholarship, Barbara Jasinski, Camille Jasinski, Vincent Stefan ’18; (3) The Father Paul J. Drobin Scholarship, Father Paul Drobin, Samantha Dell’Anno ’17; (4) The Hartwell and Paulette Herring Scholarship, Hartwell Herring, Lulu Zhang ’17; (5) The Sally Lachut Majka Scholarship, Sally Majka ’61, Summer Carbone ’17, Don Majka

Held each spring, UC’s annual Scholarship Luncheon gives donors the opportunity to spend time on campus with the student recipients of their generous gifts. For these students, it’s a chance to share their stories, learn more about their donors, and most important, say thank you.

met. They took a true interest in my education and future plans.

We talked about Mrs. Majka’s career as an elementary school teacher, and she shared ideas for science lessons that will help me immensely when it comes to designing them for teachers in Baton Rouge, LA, where I am currently volunteering with AmeriCorps.

This year’s event, held on April 26, was no exception.

After I walked across stage at commencement in May, Mrs. Majka got up from the front row and gave me the biggest hug. It was really a special moment I will never forget.”—Summer Carbone ’17, Neuroscience

Frank E. Gannett Journalism Scholarship Established by the Frank E. Gannett Newspaper Foundation, Inc., this scholarship is awarded to students studying journalism at Utica College.

“I was incredibly grateful to learn I had received the Gannett Scholarship during my freshman year. I’d always wanted to pursue a career in journalism and public relations, and having the financial support from UC made my goal seem reachable.

At the Scholarship Luncheon, it was great to meet Dave Dudajek and Michele Howgate from the Gannett Newspaper Foundation.

It meant a lot that they were willing to take the time to meet with students, and they were genuinely interested in my career plans and goals.” —Marissa Filletti ’18, Public Relations Sally Lachut Majka Scholarship Established by Utica College Trustee Sally Lachut Majka and Donald Majka, this scholarship is awarded to students of Polish descent.

Recipients must demonstrate a spirit of perseverance, initiative, hard work, and self-reliance, while maintaining a minimum GPA of 3.0.

“Receiving the Majka Scholarship impacted my UC education in multiple positive ways. It has been a long road for me, and my federal funding was very, very limited when it came to my last year as a senior at UC. Thanks to the Majka Scholarship, I was able to just afford my tuition for my final year and graduate with the class of 2017! Knowing that the Majkas believed in me enough to choose me to receive the scholarship made me believe in myself. I worked that much harder in my classes to show how grateful I was to be the recipient.

I loved meeting the Majkas at the Scholarship Luncheon. They are two of the most kind and encouraging individuals I have ever

Father Paul J. Drobin Scholarship Established by an anonymous donor in recognition of Father Drobin’s contribution of care, counsel, and dedication to the Utica community, this scholarship is awarded to full-time students who demonstrate high moral character and show academic merit and financial need.

“Father Paul Drobin is truly an inspiration. His kind words and encouragement have made me the happiest recipient of his scholarship. His contributions to my education have not only benefited me financially, but also influenced my character. I am honored to represent such an upstanding individual. Father Paul is a role model for the Utica College community. When I received notice that I won this scholarship, I felt blessed. I knew my hard work and dedication toward my education and the UC community was recognized. .

Spending time with Father Paul at the Scholarship Luncheon meant I would be able to catch up and talk to someone who genuinely cared about my progress in life. When he asks how you’re doing, he honestly wants to hear about your successes and plans for the future. Talking with him rejuvenates my mindset. I love hearing his stories and ‘pep talks.’ He really cares.

Since graduating in May, I have already started grad school at SUNY Cortland to further my education and was hired as an English teacher at Little Falls Middle School. I hope to inspire and impact the lives of my future students. I want to be a role model like Father Paul is to me. I told him I would make him proud, and I will stand by my word!”—Samantha Dell’Anno ’17, English

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Building For the Future One of UC’s fastest growing majors will soon have a new home. A 15,000-square-foot academic building on campus will accommodate the rising enrollment in the Construction Management program. Located adjacent to Hubbard Hall, the modern two-story facility will incorporate smart classrooms, instructional spaces and labs, and a multi-use auditorium, all with a modular design that allows for further expansion.

“When prospective students come to campus and see this new, high-quality facility, it will enhance the College’s ability to recruit and retain the kind of promising young professionals the industry needs,” says Gary Thurston ’68, a distinguished program alumnus and advisory board member.

Thurston made a foundational gift of $1 million toward the project; the bulk of the remaining costs will be funded by individual donations. At the time of publication, funding for the project had surpassed the $2-million mark toward the $3 million goal.

To learn more about the project or to donate, contact Tim Nelson at tnelson@utica.edu or (315) 792-3489.

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A Powerful ‘Voice’ Tim Roye ’81 has been the “the voice of the Golden State Warriors” for more than 20 years, so it was only natural for Roye to deliver the 2017 convocation address on August 28, welcoming more than 700 new students to campus. Roye, a former member of both the Tangerine and WPNR staffs, has spent 28 years working play-by-play for the NBA, including two trips to the NBA finals.

Class Notes Dr. Allen Berger ’57, Savannah, GA, published an article titled “You’re Never Too Old to Go to College,” in the Savannah Morning News on July 31, 2017.

Michael B. Levine ’61, Boynton Beach, FL, is chair of the Audio Visual Committee,Valencia Isles Homeowners Association. The Committee handles all technical needs of the community and has seven dedicated volunteers who specialize in audio-visual equipment.

Dr. Robert L. DeCarlo ’65, Herkimer, NY, was inducted into the Healthcare Hall of Distinction, class of 2017. He was honored for having touched the lives of thousands of Mohawk Valley residents through his devotion, compassion, and leadership in the medical community.

Thomas J. Nelson ’69 & ’90 and Kyle R. Strife ’08, New Hartford, NY, held an official ribbon-cutting event on August 8, 2017 for the newly named Nelson & Strife Financial Group.

The firm was founded in 2002

by Financial Advisor and former Utica Comptroller Thomas J. Nelson. (Photo 1) Barrett E. McBee Jr. ’70, Tilton, NH, was presented with the Distinguished Teaching Lecturer Award. A lecturer in English, McBee was recognized for being an effective teacher and a kind, thoughtful, and patient person.

Paul B. Montana ’70, Stratham, NH, published his first novel in 2016, Forever & Always, under the name PB Montana. (Photo 2) Rochelle A. Cassella ’74, Cazenovia, NY, is the congregational director of communications for the Sisters of

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3 St. Francis of the Neumann Communities, Syracuse, NY. Victor J. Fariello Jr. ’76, New Hartford, NY, published an article on antique collecting and dealing in The Town Crier’s July 2017 edition. He is an active member of the New Hartford Historical Society and is creating a group dedicated to antique preservation called the Jedediah Sanger Chapter of the Questers.

Stanley A. Mattos ’77, Waxhaw, NC, vice president of operations for Brand USA, was traveling with twin brother, Steven, on their motorcycles to Americade in Lake George, NY, in June 2017. He stopped along the way to visit his alma mater. (Photo 3) Robert C. Flaherty ’81, Crotonon-Hudson, NY, chairman and CEO, Ketchum Inc., was named PR Leader of the Year 2016 by

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4 International Communications Consultancy Organization (ICCO).

Raymond L. Philo ’81, New Hartford, NY, professor of practice in criminal justice, and Dr. James Brown ’88, assistant professor of criminal justice, presented their research, The Corr of the American Criminal Justice System: The Public Administration of an American Tragedy at the American Association for Public Administration’s (ASPA) Annual Conference in Atlanta, GA on March 19, 2017. (Photo 4) Dr. Mark Vivacqua ’81, Utica, NY, was selected as a Genesis Group Celebration of Education Hall of Distinction inductee. Vivacqua also announced his retirement as district superintendent, a position he held since 2009, for the Herkimer BOCES program,

effective August 31, 2016.

Mary Hayes Gordon ’82, New Hartford, NY, was selected as a 2017 YWCA Outstanding Women honoree. The award honors women who live or work in Oneida and Herkimer counties and who have demonstrated excellence and leadership in their career paths and communities.

Randolph J. Collins ’83, Schenectady, NY, announced his retirement, effective April 2017, from CSArch, a leading architecture and engineering firm based in Albany and Newburgh, NY. Collins was the firm’s president and founding principal in 1991. He has led the strategic planning, marketing, and business development efforts and has been responsible for human resources and the construction management division.

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Dr. Brian J. Jackson ’85, Utica, NY, published an article on dental implants in the fall edition of the journal for the Academy of General Dentistry. The manuscript was titled Immediate Implant Placement and Provisionalization: A Case Report.

Andria L. DeLisle-Heath ’87, Herkimer, NY, was named a 2016 recipient of the Genesis Group’s Joseph R. Carucci Legacy Award. She was also recognized for being an active member of the Mohawk Valley Rotary Club for more than 10 years on June 27, 2017, during their Changing of the Guard ceremony.

Dr. James C. Brown ’88, Clinton, NY, Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice and Professor Raymond L. Philo ’81 presented their research, The Corr of the American Criminal Justice System: The Public Administration of an American Tragedy at the American Association for Public Administration’s (ASPA) Annual Conference in Atlanta, GA on March 19, 2017. Dr. Brown also served as the panel moderator.

(Photo 4) Treesa J. Salter ’88, Springfield, VA, will retire from the U.S. Air Force Nurse Corps after 24 years 9 months and 22 days of honorable Active Duty Service, effective April 1, 2018.

Julie A. Appley Sowers ’89, Whitesboro, NY, has been appointed by M&T Bank to vice president and senior government banking relationships manager at the bank’s South Salina Street branch in Syracuse.

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John H. Hobika Jr. ’91, New Hartford, NY, was named vice president of the MVHS Foundations. Hobika has been on the SEMC Foundation Board since 2010 and serves on the Capital Campaign Feasibility Study and Gift Acceptance Committees.

Hobika is vice president and senior regional specialist of M&T Securities Inc. Julie E. Botteri ’92, Florida Keys, FL, is a professional travel writer. She is also a web editor for Newman PR and runs a foster home for dogs with her husband in Marathon, FL. Franca Armstrong ’94, Rome, NY, was selected as a 2017 YWCA Outstanding Women Honoree. The award honors women who live or work in Oneida and Herkimer counties and who have demonstrated excellence and leadership in their career paths and communities.

Bernard L. Hyman Jr. ’94, New Hartford, NY, was named the new director of the Economic Crime and Cybersecurity Institute of Utica College.

Donna M. Adamo ’95, Atlanta, GA, was featured on the cover of Women of Upstate New York magazine, November 2016 edition. The story shared how she grew up in Utica, NY, and her career path as reporter and news anchor. Adamo has been Director of Client Project Communications for Arcadis in Atlanta since 2012.

Dr. Nigel A.S. Hernandez ’95, Philadelphia, PA, has joined Akari Therapeutics, a biopharmaceutical company, as vice president of worldwide regulatory affairs in January 2017.

Cedric Sickout G’09: Fighting Global Financial Crime Cedric Sickout had several major accomplishments under his belt even before enrolling as an online student at Utica College in 2008.

Sickout grew up in Gabon, a small country on the coast of Central Africa. After graduating from high school, he moved to the States to pursue a bachelor’s degree in finance. His B.S. from Winthrop University in South Carolina led to a competitive job with the financial intelligence unit of Wachovia, now Wells Fargo & Co., in South Carolina.

“That’s when I knew what my calling was,” says Sickout. Fighting financial crime, which is prevalent in his home country, became Sickout’s focus. He set his sights on Wells Fargo’s International Group and reasoned that earning a master’s degree through UC’s online financial crime program would help him get there. He was right.

“I can proudly say that one of my cleverest decisions was to enroll at Utica College,” says Sickout, who went on to serve as Wells Fargo’s assistant vice president of Financial Crimes Risk Management in Philadelphia.

In 2016, after 12 years at Wells Fargo, Sickout joined the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the private arm of The World Bank Group in Washington, D.C. “I am using my skills to advance the causes I care most deeply about,” he says, “Supporting the global fight against all types of economic crimes, bad governance, and corrupt practices around the world.”

Jay M. Snow ’96, Whitesboro, NY, was recognized by The Genesis Group and The Medical Societies as an Outstanding Healthcare Professional, class of 2017. Through his leadership in the medical community, he touched the lives of thousands of Mohawk Valley residents by his devotion, wisdom, and compassion.

Loretta A. Myers ’97, Oneida, NY, was recognized by The Genesis Group and The Medical Societies as an Outstanding Healthcare Professional, class of 2017. Through his leadership in the medical community, she touched the lives of thousands of Mohawk Valley residents by his devotion, wisdom, and compassion.

Stephen T. Surace ’98, Utica, NY, was named treasurer of the MVHS Foundations. Surace has served on the FSLH Foundation Board since 2014 and serves on the Bylaws and Gift Acceptance Policy Committees. He is a senior vice present and the chief financial officer of Adjusters International.

Eryn A. Balch ’99, Rome, NY, is the managing director of business operations at the Kelberman Center of Utica, NY. Ichiro S. Seto ’00, Temecula, CA,

has recently earned a new job as an occupational therapist at Pro Motion Therapy Services, Inc. Nora C. Staring ’02, Little Falls, NY, was selected as a 2017 YWCA Outstanding Women Honoree. The award honors women who live or work in Oneida and Herkimer counties and who have demonstrated excellence and leadership in their career paths and communities.

Dominic W. Zultanski ’02, Osceola, IN, has joined Teachers Credit Union as senior director of security and loss prevention.

He will manage TCU’s overall security program and loss prevention.

Toshiko Nonaka ’03, New York, NY, is a certified child life specialist II, in the PICU and PCICU at the Kravis Children’s Hospital at Mount Sinai in New York, NY. Salvatore C. Paladino III ’03, New Hartford, NY, was recognized by the Genesis Group as an Outstanding Young Professional, Class of 2017.

Richard T. Kosakowski ’06, Lee Center, NY, was included in the 226 new members of the New York State Police recently graduated from the 204th session of the New York State

Police Academy’s Basic School in 2016.

Deborah L. Mowers ’07, Herkimer, NY, was selected as a Genesis Group Celebration of Education honoree.

David J. Nackley G’08, Clinton, NY, was selected as a Genesis Group Celebration of Education honoree.

Kyle R. Strife ’08 and Thomas J. Nelson ’69 & ’90, New Hartford, NY, held an official ribbon cutting event on August 8, 2017 of the newly named Nelson & Strife Financial Group.

Dr. Kenneth J. Visalli Jr. ’08 joined the Slocum-Dickson Medical Group PLLC as part of the Group’s Hospitalist Program. Dr. Visalli will provide care for Slocum-Dickson patients admitted to the hospital ages 18 and older.

Benjamin J. Atwood ’09 & G’13, Waterville, NY, assistant director of the Young Scholars, was given $5,000 from the Empire State Excellence in Teaching Award. Atwood is also an assistant football coach at Utica College. (Photo 5) Dr. Amanda Butler-Saravia ’09, Jacksonville, FL, was hired as lead scientist at NASA. She will supervise and coordinate small animal research projects in the

International Space Station and work with astronauts and investigators in biotech companies and universities to refine protocols for the experiments.

Heather A. Drummond G’09, Vernon Center, NY, was selected as a Genesis Group Celebration of Education honoree.

Travis L. Olivera ’09, Utica, NY, was recognized as the Treasurer of the Mohawk Valley Rotary Club during its Changing of the Guard ceremony on June 27, 2017.

Kristopher M. Reece ’09, Oriskany, NY, was hired as tax manager for Fust Charles Chambers LLP. Jennifer J. Daignault ’10, Rome, NY, was included in the 226 new members of the New York State Police recently graduated from the 204th session of the New York State Police Academy’s Basic School in 2016.

Neal P. Bartlett ’11, Whitesboro, NY, has been selected as a Genesis Group Celebration of Education honoree.

Michael T. Bohne ’11, Albany, NY, is communications and marketing assistant at Capitalize Albany Corporations and serves as media contact. Bohne is also on the

Hop Dreams: Scott Britton ’07 During his senior year at UC, Scott Britton visited the FX Matt Brewery in Utica as part of a biology department trip. On the tour, Britton met the brewery’s microbiologist. “I made the joke, ‘how does somebody get a job like this?’ Combining beer and science seemed like the dream job.”

Less than a decade later, Britton ’07 is living the dream as Research and Development Scientist at Duvel Moortgat Brewery in Breendonk, Belgium. He began his beer career at Ommegang in Cooperstown, New York, where he was hired as quality control manager in 2007 and quickly moved up the ranks. In 2015, presented with the opportunity to transfer to the brewery’s global headquarters in Belgium, Britton jumped at the chance.

Though his work is more complex than drinking beer all day, taste-testing is a huge part of Britton’s job. “I smell and sip the beer to analyze the balance of hops and malt,” he says. And according to Britton, when beer is part of a day’s work, it’s no longer his preferred way to unwind. “I obviously love beer,” he says. “But after being around it all day, the last thing you want to do on a Friday night is go out for a pint.”

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board at Northeastern Association of the Blind at Albany, which helps blind and visually impaired individuals achieve independence and growth.

Michelle Walters ’11, New Hartford, NY, completed the Leadership Mohawk Valley program, a 10-month program that prepares a future community leaders. She is the business manager of the St. Elizabeth Medical Center Laboratory.

Jeffrey A. Blazek ’12, New Hartford, NY, was the recipient of the New York State Police Investigators Association Joseph T. Aversa Physical Fitness Award for the attainment of the highest physical fitness during the Academy’s Physical Training Program. Aversa was a six-year State Police veteran who believed that physical conditioning was an integral part of being a trooper.

Renee N. Tomasek ’12, Schenectady, NY, is assistant branch manager at Favorite Healthcare Staffing of Albany, NY. Jennifer Moock G’13, Ardmore, PA, works as a senior fraud analyst and received a 2016 Investigator of the Year Award.

(Photo 6) Michael T. Siegfried ’13, Utica, NY, was included in the 226 new members of the New York State Police recently graduated from the 204th session of the New York State Police Academy’s Basic School in 2016.

Bryan R. Habick ’14, Wilmington, OH, is the head men’s lacrosse coach at Wilmington College. He is currently the youngest head coach in NCAA lacrosse.

David W. Lyubezhanin ’14, Oriskany, NY, was included in the 226 new members of the New York State Police recently graduated from the 204th session of the New York State Police Academy’s Basic School in 2016.

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Robert D. Irvin ’16, Rome, NY is IT support specialist for D’Arcangelo & Co. Dylan T. Wells ’16, Nashville, TN, launched his professional hockey career with the Knoxville Ice Bears of the Southern Professional Hockey League.

Births and Additions 2000 Andrew Anguish ’00 and his wife, Tara, Utica, NY, had a son on June 9, 2017.

2002 Ben Mack and his wife, Erin, Syracuse, NY, had a daughter, Lucy, on September 29, 2016.

(Photo 7) 2003 Anthony Alcantara and his wife, Darlene, New Hartford, NY, had a daughter on May 9, 2017.

Maksim Berkovich and his wife, Katrena Freetage Berkovich ’04, New Hartford, NY, had a daughter, Rebekah Lynne, on May 16, 2017.

10 Matthew Carr and Amie Lucia ’05, Jamesville, NY, had a daughter, Annalise Olivia, on July 26, 2017.

Kristen Knaperek Stanley and husband, Dale, Whitesboro, NY, had a daughter on April 28, 2017.

2004

Christa Landers Stephens and husband, Jason, Utica, NY, had a son on April 16, 2017.

Shevaun Dowd Abbott and her husband, Richard Dowd, Ilion, NY, had a daughter on December 15, 2016.

Katrena Freetage Berkovich and her husband, Maksim Berkovich ’03, New Hartford, NY, had a daughter, Rebekah Lynne, on May 16, 2017.

(Photo 8) A.J. Fus, Jr. and wife, Lauren, Venice, FL, had a son, Logan Henry, on March 6, 2017.

Michelle Hogan and her husband, Jeff Hogan ’05, Utica, NY, had a daughter on June 9, 2017.

2005

2006 Amy Bepko and her husband, James Bepko ’06, Whitesboro, NY, had a son on March 1, 2017.

Joseph Decondo, DPT and wife, Arity, New Hartford, NY, had a daughter on May 24, 2017.

Barbara Colon Macri and her husband, Bill, Little Falls, NY, had a daughter on July 26, 2017.

2008 Philip Kamp and wife, Michelle, West Winfield, NY, had a son on March 16, 2017.

Amie Lucia and Matthew Carr ’03, Jamesville, NY, had a daughter, Annalise Olivia, on July 26, 2017.

2009

Jeff Hogan and his wife, Michelle Hogan ’04, Utica, NY, had a daughter on June 9, 2017.

Mackenzie Pfendler and husband, Seth, Boonville, NY, had a son on August 11, 2017.

Lauren Kozak and her husband, Jeremy, New Hartford, NY, had a son on June 8, 2017.

Robert Stevens and wife, Autumn, Whitesboro, NY, had a daughter on May 6, 2017.

Kyle Wiggins and his wife, Jessica Slawson Wiggins, Whitesboro, NY, had a daughter on June 15, 2017.

2010 Kevin Enea and wife, Kristy, Ilion, NY, had a daughter on March 22, 2017.

John C. Hastwell IV and wife, Jessica, Port Leyden, NY, had a daughter on July 28, 2017.

Amanda Lampman and husband, Ryan, Woodgate, NY, had a son on April 24, 2017.

Jennifer Blanchard ’05: Finding the ‘Write’ Fit Jennifer Blanchard thought she scored her dream job when she was hired as a writer for a business-to-business magazine headquartered in California. But she soon realized that the strict corporate culture wasn’t the right fit — or as she puts it: “I was sitting behind a desk eight hours a day, working for someone else, and feeling like a piece of my soul was dying.”

Blanchard, a public relations and journalism alum who studied creative writing and poetry at UC, dreamed of writing novels. By 2008, she decided to begin her first book in whatever spare time she could find outside of the office. She also started a blog to document her journey and the struggles aspiring writers face in turning creative ideas into published work.

“I started the blog as a way of motivating myself, because while so many people saw me as a highachiever, I had a hard time getting motivated when it came to chasing my big dreams,” she says.

The plan worked. Within a year, she not only drafted her first novel, but her blog had gained a steady following. Through paid memberships and newsletters, Blanchard’s online presence became a reliable source of income, and by 2012, she quit her corporate job to blog and write full-time.

Today, and more than 10 self-published books later, Blanchard works from her new home in Austin, Texas, and helps aspiring writers through workshops, oneon-one coaching, and blog articles with practical advice. In early 2017, her blog was named one of the year’s Best Blogs for Writers by PositiveWriter.com.

She hopes her career journey can inspire others feeling trapped by unfulfilling jobs.

Says Blanchard: “I’m on a mission to empower writers, authors and creators to go after their writing dreams and live the life they’ve always imagined.”

had a daughter on December 16, 2016.

Joseph Pruckno and wife, Michelle Guca Pruckno, Rome, NY, had a daughter on March 28, 2017.

Jason Stephens and wife, Christa Landers Stephens, Utica, NY, had a son on April 16, 2017.

2013 Nicole Gazitano Fleming and husband, Lee, Rome, NY, had a daughter on April 13, 2017.

Elgar Sykes and wife, Teri Fransman Sykes, Oriskany, NY, had a son on May 15, 2017.

2011 Ermin Aljukic and Enisa Bajrektarevic, Utica, NY, had a son on July 21, 2017.

Alyssa Buell Devins and her husband, Brian, Utica, NY, had a daughter on June 29, 2017.

Aida Durmisevic and her husband, Mirsen, Utica, NY, had a daughter on September 9, 2017.

Vanessa Glenn and Chris Kupelian, Whitesboro, NY, had a son on April 3, 2017.

Ryan Monaco, DPT and wife, Kelly Jones Monaco, New Hartford, NY, had a son on April 27, 2017.

Spencer Roose and wife, Laura Zaber Roose, Rome, NY, had a son on March 30, 2017.

2014 Sarah McMyler and Michael Geigel, New York Mills, NY, had a daughter on August 29, 2017.

2012 Joseph Durr and Brittany Lyszczar, Utica, NY, had a daughter on June 27, 2017.

Amanda Roach Goodenough and her husband, Trevor, Sauquoit, NY, had a daughter on June 1, 2017.

Monica Jaquays and Joshua Risley, Oriskany, NY, had a son on April 8, 2017.

Jessica Morrissey and Justin Robenski, Westmoreland, NY,

John J. Bach Jr. ’75 and Valerie Bach, Punta Gorda, FL, were married on November 12, 2016.

(Photo 9) Mariann Fitzgerald Munson ’85 and Robert C. Munson II ’85, Utica, NY, celebrated their 30th wedding anniversary on September 12, 2017.

Jeremy M. Zogby ’05 and Nertila Zogby G’10, Clinton, NY, were married on April 7, 2017.

(Photo 10)

2015 Victoria Parry, Sauquoit, NY, and Randy Miller had a son on August 18, 2017.

Michael Sweezey and his wife, Megan Porter Sweezey, Rome, NY, had a daughter, Peyton, on September 12, 2016.

2017 Danielle Force, Utica, NY, had a son on September 1, 2017.

Weddings and Anniversaries

Send us your news! pioneer@utica.edu

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1 and 2 (Left to Right) Darcy Hier ’11, Samantha Glockling ’11, Eliza Kelley ’11, Jona Johnson ’11, Lindsay Norton ’13 3 (Left to Right) Caitlyn Maccaldi ’14, Vanessa Maines ’14, Megan Myers ’14, Meredith Tice ’14

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4 (Left to Right) Melissa Ortiz ’03, Brian Agnew ’03, Devan Bonnemere ’03, Olabisi Aberdeen ’01 5 (Left to Right) Jordan Hobaica ’14, Cody Adams ’13, Mike Taffe ’15, Eric Peterson ’13

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We love Pioneer weddings and reunions! Send us your photos: pioneer@utica.edu

In Memoriam William N. Butler ’49, Dade city, FL, August 9, 2016.

Evelyn S. Dixon ’49, Vacaville, CA, April 21, 2017 Walter A. Fudyma ’49, Utica, NY, January 3, 2017.

Carl D. Lawson ’49, Utica, NY, June 21, 2017.

William J. Slifka ’49, Stratford, NY, October 22, 2016.

William D. Ashmore ’50, New Hartford, NY, January 31, 2017.

Donald H. Boerum ’50, Orient, NY, December 11, 2016.

Paul M. Ganeles ’50, Rye, NY, February 8, 2017.

Edwal S. Jones ’50, Annandale, VA, June 3, 2017.

Leland R. Jones ’50, Oneida NY, February 5, 2017.

Nicholas P. Preziosi ’50, Garden City, NY, August 15, 2010.

Dr. Albert M. Shkane ’50, Utica, NY, October 31, 2016.

Paul D. Williams ’50, Ava, NY, August 10, 2017.

James H. Wurz, Jr. ’50, Sylvan Beach, NY, September 14, 2016.

Dr. Norman Greenfeld ’51, Albany, NY, January 30, 2017.

Rocco F. Iuorno ’51, Rome, NY, October 13, 2016.

Dr. Theodore E. Majewski ’51,

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Kitty Hawk, NC, August 16, 2016.

Cleveland A. Parkins ’51, Louisville, KY, June 14, 2015.

Samuel J. Anzalone ’52, Wesley Hills, NY, December 30, 2016.

Carleton H. Baker ’52, Augusta, GA, January 28, 2017.

John D. Durant ’52, Deerfield, NY, June 7, 2017.

Donald W. Hammond ’52, Ilion, NY, July 6, 2017.

Albert C. Henry ’52, Palmyra, PA, June 26, 2017.

Florence S. Marcus ’52, Worcester, MA, June 21, 2016.

Carl L. Senter ’52, Albany, NY, January 25, 2017.

Durwood L. Creed ’53, Stuart, FL, December 20, 2016.

Kathryn K. Garrett ’54, Albany, NY, November 5, 2016.

Joseph N. Aquino ’55, Rome, NY, August, 4, 2017 Bart G. Boehlert ’55, Colorado Springs, CO, April 9, 2017.

Peter Juravich ’55, Canastota, NY, March 28, 2017.

Robert N. Feldman ’56, New Hartford, March 6, 2017.

Robert P. Maliani ’56, Utica, NY, September 7, 2016.

Grant E. Johnson ’57, New Hartford, NY, February 27, 2017.

George R. Le Porte ’57, Baldwinsville, NY, December, 23, 2016.

Raymond H. Slater Jr. ’57, Binghamton, NY, April 29, 2017.

Dr. Sandro Sticca ’57, Vestal NY, May 3, 2017.

John A. Falitico ’58, Huntington Beach, CA, October 12, 2016.

Eileen M. Filkins ’58, Prattsburgh, NY, December 4, 2016.

Raymond G. Greer ’58, Danville, CA, January 22, 2017.

Louise C. Johnson ’58, Madison, WI, September 15, 2016.

Paul E. March Sr. ’58, Ilion, NY, September 4, 2017.

Edward P. O’Connell ’58, Rome, NY, September 26, 2016.

Mario L. Totaro ’58, Rome, NY, January 23, 2017.

James B. McEvoy ’59, West Lebanon, NH, November 5, 2016.

Frederick A. Normand ’59, Rome, NY, November 2, 2016.

Dr. Leroy Oddis ’59, Downingtown, PA, February 16, 2016.

Louise A. Picker ’59, Monroe Township, NJ, April 11, 2017.

Frederick W. Schempf ’59, Johnson City, TN, January 20, 2015.

Marian P. Silvers ’59, Plymouth, MA, August 5, 2016.

Marcia J. Delaware ’60, Boonville, NY, August 13, 2016.

John M. Engvold ’60, Fort Myers, FL, January 30, 2017.

William G. Finley ’60, Sherrill, NY, June 25, 2017.

Edwin J. Lowicki ’60, Rome, NY, September 20, 2016.

Donald L. Mark ’60, Whitesboro, NY, June 17, 2017.

Phillip E. Norton ’60, West Hartford, CT, December 1, 2016.

John A. Potenza, Sr. ’60, Endicott, NY, November 16, 2016.

Frank J. Rehm ’60, Naples, FL, August 15, 2017.

George L. Salton ’60, Palm Beach Gardens, FL, March 13, 2016.

Marie J. Borowiec ’61, Whitesboro, NY, April 7, 2017.

Mary Ruth Buckley ’61, Colonial Heights, VA, December 15, 2015.

Dieter H. Fritzsch ’62, Rochester, NY, October 18, 2016.

Robert W. Chase ’63, West Winfield, NY, April 14, 2017.

Henry J. Getek ’63, Rome, NY, June 24, 2017.

Robert J. McVeigh ’63, Naperville, IL, October 8, 2016.

E. Bruce Nero ’63, Sebago, ME, August 7, 2016.

Pulitzer, New Title for Veteran Journalist Jim Asher ’70 Utica native and journalist Jim Asher ’70 has spent the majority of his decades-long career uncovering injustice for America’s most respected newspapers.

His guiding philosophy: “The more you look closely, the more you find a bigger truth.”

It’s the maxim that propelled Asher’s work on The Panama Papers, which won the 2017 Pulitzer for Explanatory Reporting. Asher, the former Washington Bureau Chief for McClatchy Newspapers, says the series revealed large-scale corruption among world leaders and politicians who use offshore tax havens to hide their wealth. “It was a hugely important story to tell, and it had serious consequences,” says Asher.

“Governments have fallen and people have been jailed as a result.”

In January 2016, Asher left McClatchy, and in August 2017, joined the Associated Press. As news editor in the AP’s Washington bureau, Asher will oversee coverage of the investigations into interference in the 2016 election—a role that falls perfectly in line with his career focus.

“I’ve always been focused on the way journalism can reveal things, and the way journalism can make people’s lives better.”

John S. Pratt ’63, Fort Myers, FL, May 4, 2017.

Michael J. Salerno ’63, Rome, NY, July 25, 2017.

Joseph A. Tosti ’63, Rome, NY, August 13, 2016.

Richard G. Wilderman ’63, Nehalem, OR, October 13, 2016.

Alfred J. Candido ’64, Forestport, NY, February 14, 2017.

Richard L. Alito ’65, Whiteboro, NY, January 28. 2017.

Edward J. Killian ’65, Sauquoit, NY, January 5, 2017.

Theodore J. Petrillo ’65, Whitesboro, NY, November 18, 2016.

Fred J. Remick Jr. ’65, Rome, NY, June 8, 2017.

Isabel C. Schad ’65, New Hartford, NY, October 25, 2016.

Stanley H. Johnson ’66, East Durham, NY, November 3, 2016.

John C. Kelly ’66, Wofford Heights, CA, July 26, 2016.

John C. Schmidt ’66, Forestport, NY, March 24, 2017.

Michael Asdigian ’67, Schenectady, NY, November 18, 2013.

Lawrence P. Custodero ’67, New Hartford, NY, June 19, 2017.

James B. Fruin ’67, Rome, NY, January 31, 2017.

Eugene J. Kreger ’67, Portland, OR, October 19, 2016.

Violet A. Marano ’67, Utica. NY, November 22, 2016.

Catherine T. McGurn ’67, Utica, NY, April 13, 2017.

William Meola ’68, Utica, NY, January 10, 2017.

Lillian S. Randall ’68, Whitesboro, NY, November 14, 2016.

Carl F. Searing II ’68, Eau Claire, WI, October 24, 2016.

Marie C. Vitagliano ’68, New Hartford, NY, August 29, 2017.

Thomas J. Ablan Sr. ’69, Carthage, NY, March 18, 2017.

David G. Fleet ’69, Rome, NY, September 13, 2016.

Frederick R. Gachowski ’69, New Hartford, NY, June 25, 2017.

Dorothy M. Palewski ’69, Markham, VA, June 15, 2017.

Camille M. Caulkins ’70, New Hartford, NY, April 15, 2017.

Albert Desalvatore ’70, Whitesboro, NY, June 29, 2017.

Martha M. Reals ’70, Mohawk, NY, March 9, 2017.

Charles J. Sabonis ’70, San Ramon, CA, October 26, 2016.

John P. Tofani ’70, Ilion, NY, March 29, 2017.

Marianne D. Jakubowski ’71, Utica, NY, October 2, 2016.

R. James Johnson ’71, Auburn, NY, August 12, 2016.

John M. Kutzuba ’71, Franklin, NC, July 3, 2017.

Henrietta S. Peterpaul ’71, Utica, NY, October 22, 2016.

Brian G. Wallace ’71, Westmoreland, NY, August 29, 2017.

Mary L. Jackson ’72, Herkimer, NY, December 10, 2016.

Peter J. Monterose ’72, Stittville, NY, October 28, 2016.

Jon G. Gifford ’73, Utica, NY, March 17, 2017.

Barbara S. Klein-Peres ’73, Rochester. NY, December 31, 2016.

Charles M. Murphy, III ’73, Reston, VA, May 24, 2015.

Gary M. Murphy ’73, Plattsburgh, NY, June 10, 2017.

Karen Walston ’73, Capitol Heights, MD, January 27, 2016.

Vincent N. Cavo ’74, Utica, NY, September 26, 2016.

Paul F. Moritz Jr. ’74, Great Barrington, MA, November 17, 2016.

Alayne D. Podeszek ’74, New York Mills, NY, December 22, 2016.

Sharon A. Vorce ’74, Sauquoit, NY, September 4, 2016.

Charles R. Fenger ’75, Moodus, CT, September 14, 2016.

Joseph A. Gimelli ’75, Utica, NY, November 1, 2016.

Richard E. Kaplan ’75, Utica, NY, January 4, 2017.

Evelyn S. Molinaro ’75, Cleveland, TN, July 25, 2017.

Dr. Christopher P. Cirmo ’76, Amherst, WI, May 26, 2017.

Bennie S. Diliberto ’76, Rome,

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NY, August 22, 2016.

Arlene D. Mason ’76, Utica, NY, September 10, 2017.

Maureen A. Regan ’76, Raquette Lake, NY, December 10, 2016.

Leonarda D. Oliveri ’77, Brewster, NY, February 20, 2017.

Lonnie S. Tomlin ’77, Albany, NY, October 14, 2016.

Russell H. Wilson ’77, Johnstown, NY, March 31, 2016.

Alfred Brockunier, III ’78, Piseco, NY, July 17, 2017.

Kevin L. Aldridge ’80, Scotia, NY, August 13, 2016.

Ronald C. Denison ’81, Utica, NY, September 2, 2016.

Raymond E. Santiago ’81, North East, MD, April 11, 2016.

Robert Addessi ’82, Oceanport, NJ, May 7, 2015.

Patricia A. Cecilia ’82, Utica, NY, May 1, 2017.

Barbara A. French ’82, Winston-Salem, NC, February 22, 2017.

Phyllis A. Mouakad ’82, Oak Ridge, NJ, November 11, 2015.

Richard B. Owens, III ’82, Litchfield, ME, June 28, 2016.

Cynthia J. Salerno ’82, Covington, KY, December 29, 2016.

Gerald B. Showalter ’83, New Hartford, NY, March 24, 2017.

Mark E. Duck ’84, Utica, NY, November 30, 2016.

Robert J. Beach ’86, Utica, NY, February 26, 2017.

Kurt Vonnegut ’88, Schuylerville, NY, September 11. 2016.

Anne M. Williams ’89, Whitesboro, NY, June 8, 2017.

Kenneth L. Carlton ’90, Tallahassee, FL, May 23, 2013.

Jean M. Garrow ’90, Herkimer, NY, May 24, 2017.

Scott B. Manion ’90, West Winfield, NY, January 25, 2017.

Kimberly H. Thomas ’91, Naples, FL, April 1, 2017.

Albert K. Jungers ’94, Cooperstown, NY, May 27, 2013.

Mary L. Nellenbach ’97, Spo-

HOMECOMING Alumni and Family W eekend

OCTO BE R 2 0 - 2 2 , 2 01 7

kane, WA, June 14, 2014.

Deayn S. Davis ’02, New York, NY, July 31, 2017.

John R. Monahan ’02, Bohemia, LI, November 26, 2013.

Mary Ann Weese ’02, Skowhegan, ME, October 29. 2016.

Richard L. Bunnell G ’04, Avon, CT, May 15, 2017.

Michael J. Bailey ’05, Clifton Park, NY, June 7, 2017.

Janine R. Bohnert ’05, Earlville, NY, August, 11, 2016.

Patrick R. Mutter ’06, Brewerton, NY, January 7, 2017.

Nolan A. Wengert ’06 & G ’13, Utica, NY, April 9, 2017.

Andre Yakimchuk ’10, Rochester, NY, September 15, 2017.

Christopher M. Stuhlman, Whitesboro, NY, October 8, 2016.

Jeffrey H. Jefferies, Canton, GA, March 16, 2017.

Faculty and staff who have passed Joseph Bialek, Clay, NY, Associate Professor Emeritus of Accounting, March 5, 2017.

Shawn C. Esworthy, Binghamton, NY, former Resident Hall Director, April 4, 2009.

Kevin M. P. Flynn, New Hartford, NY, former Administrative Assistant IITS, May 20, 2017.

Dr. Marijean E. Levering, Utica, NY, Associate Professor of Theatre, July 27, 2017.

Frances B. McGlynn, Whitesboro, NY, retired Librarian, October 6, 2016.

Dr. Eugene P. Nassar, Utica, NY, Professor Emeritus of English, April 7, 2017.

Rosemary Ullrich, Clinton, NY, Associate Professor of Business Emerita, September 25, 2017.

SAVE THE DATE FOR NEXT YEAR’S HOMECOMING September 28-30, 2018

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Non-Profit Organization U.S. Postage

PAID Utica College

1600 Burrstone Road Utica, NY 13502-4892 Address Service Requested

PET PROJECT UC’s quad transformed into a petting zoo in October, when baby chicks, goats, pigs and horses visited to help students battle mid-term stress.

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