Youngstown State University Fall Magazine 2011

FALL 2011

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ON THE COVER Ballet students in Chaney High School's visual performing arts program, Youngstown, watch attentively as their instructor, YSU senior Kaitlyn Fabian, in foreground, demonstrates a dance step. Fabian will be the first student to graduate with a BA in Dance Management, one of five new degree programs approved for YSU this year. Read more in our cover story, starting on Page 10.

YSU President

Cynthia E. Anderson, ’73

YSU Board of Trustees Chair Sudershan K. Garg

Vice Chair John R. Jakubek, ’79 Millicent Counts, ’63 Delores Crawford, ’68 David C. Deibel, ’75 Harry Meshel, ’49 Leonard Schiavone Scott R. Schulick, ’94, ’96 Carole S. Weimer, ’89 Secretary Franklin S. Bennett Jr.

Student Trustee Ryan Meditz Joshua Michael Prest

Magazine Editor

Cynthia Vinarsky

Director of University Communications

Ron Cole

Executive Director of

Marketing & Communications

Mark W. Van Tilburg

Renée Cannon, ’90

Layout Design Artist

Photographer Bruce Palmer

Graduate Assistant

Andrea Armeni, ’10

Interim Director, Office Jacquelyn LeViseur, ’08 of Alumni and Events Management

Assistant Director of

Marketing & Communications

Jean Engle, ’86

Sports Contributor

Trevor Parks

Chief Development Officer

Paul McFadden, ’84

Youngstown State University is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission and is a member of the North Central Association.

Youngstown State University – A Magazine for Alumni and Friends (ISSN 2152-3746), Issue 10, Fall 2011, is published quarterly by the YSU Office of Marketing and Communications, One University Plaza, Youngstown, OH 44555.

Periodicals Postage Paid at Youngstown, Ohio.

POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Youngstown State University, Office of Marketing and Communications, One University Plaza, Youngstown, OH 44555.

Direct letters to the editor, comments or questions to the address above, call 330-941-3519 or email universitymagazine@ysu.edu.

Youngstown State University is committed to a policy of nondiscrimination on the basis of race, color, age, religion, sex, national origin, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity and/or expression, or identity as a disabled veteran or veteran of the Vietnam era, in respect to students and/or to applicants for employment, and to organizations providing contractual services to YSU. 8-001

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Letters.

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

in this

issue

“A Streetcar Named Desire” Tennessee Williams’ classic drama “A Streetcar Named Desire” was on stage at YSU’s Spotlight Theater in Bliss Hall in late September and early October, with Matthew Mazuroski, a new member of the Theater faculty, making his directorial debut. In this dress rehearsal photo are student actors Kayla Boye, left, playing Stella Kowalski, and Kelly Sullivan, as Blanche DuBois. For a schedule of upcoming University Theater productions, see Around Campus, Page 5.

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Around Campus – Find out what’s happening on and around the YSU campus.

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Faculty Photo Feature – Introducing Xiaolou Yang, an assistant professor in the Lariccia School of Accounting and Finance.

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Student Success Stories – A regular feature highlighting the achievements of YSU students.

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COVER STORY: Growing by Degrees – Five New Programs Added.

We give details on five new degree programs that are taking shape this year at YSU.

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Homework Express: Specializing in ‘A-ha!’

Moments – A behind-the scenes look at YSU’s awardwinning televised homework help program.

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Faculty Bookshelf – Celebrating faculty and staff who have recently published books, released musical CDs or displayed their work at major art exhibits.

Miss October – Calendar features alumna who survived colorectal cancer.

Alumni Spotlight – Profiles of three successful YSU alumni: Bob DiPiero, ’78; Pamela Browner White, ’87; Dr. Joe Ethan, ’97.

DEPARTMENTS 2 9 20 21 22 24 30

President’s Message Letters to the Editor YSU Foundation University Development Penguin Sports News Alumni News Class Notes

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F A L L

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President’s Message

Our Faculty – Engaged and

Committed to Success

Cynthia E. Anderson President

One of the perks of being university president is that I get a prepublication sneak preview of every issue of the YSU Magazine. It’s always fun to read the many inspiring stories of our successful alumni, students and faculty, and to learn more about the diverse array of activities on campus.

This time, I must say that the “Faculty Bookshelf” on Pages 18 and 19 impressed me tremendously. Those two pages feature 19 books, one musical CD recording and two art exhibits created by YSU faculty members. There are books on slavery in the Old South, international business in the 21st century, geospatial technologies, mythology, ethics and magnetohydrodynamics. There’s a book written by two of our faculty members in Social Work that helps mental health therapists and teachers use storytelling as a tool in easing emotional pain in children. There’s a book by a professor emeritus of History that analyzes the Manchus, founders of the Qing Empire in China. There’s even a CD of classic jazz and swing music by a faculty member/trombonist in our Dana School of Music.

You will also read in this edition about the continuing success of our faculty and staff in garnering grants for a variety of projects, including research to develop better force protection materials for the U.S. military and programs to increase public safety in local neighborhoods. In fiscal year 2011, such grants totaled nearly $9 million, 20 percent more than the previous year and the second highest total in YSU’s history.

In addition, you will learn in this edition that scholars from around the world come to YSU to join our faculty. On page 7, we spotlight Xiaolou Yang, a native of China, noted researcher and now an assistant professor in the Williamson College of Business Administration. She is one of the dozens upon dozens of accomplished scholars who have come to YSU from across the globe to pursue their career goals and share their expertise with our students and our community.

Finally, you will read in this issue about the many new academic programs that have been developed over the past several years at YSU, including the five new degree offerings approved this year. The driving force behind all of them, whether it be the new Educational Specialist Degree in School Psychology or the new bachelor’s degree in Dance Management, is our faculty, whose commitment to their students and dedication to the university is second to none.

So, while there are many ways to assess the success and value of YSU, there may be no better way than to look at our faculty. They care about students, are engaged in their disciplines and are a central part of the university and the Youngstown community, enhancing the quality of life for us all.

Enjoy this edition of YSU Magazine. Happy Holidays, and Happy New Year to all.

Cynthia E. Anderson

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Around C

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Ballistics Lab Conducts Research for U.S. Military

YSU’s Mechanical Engineering Technology program is firing up its ballistics-testing lab this semester as part of a $1.2 million, grantfunded research project to develop better force protection materials for the U.S. military.

Seniors Sean Ludt of Niles and Michelle Curl of Leetonia, along with assistant professor Brian Vuksanovich, have teamed up with the Army Research Lab, Fireline TCON and YSU’s chemistry department to test new materials that may be used as force protection materials to protect against small firearms.

From the left, senior Sean Ludt, Assistant Professor Brian Vuksanovich and senior Michelle Curl analyze a sample after a firing test in the ballistics lab in Moser Hall.

YSU Chemistry Professor Tim Wagner and engineers from Fireline, a high-performance ing are less costly than steel and can be cast in any shape, he ceramics manufacturer in Youngstown, are developing matesaid, making them ideal for manufacturing. rials for the project. The MET students then test the material Students are using the MET program’s closed-range by firing projectiles at a composite sample and analyzing ballistic tester to conduct the research trials. The equipment results. The Army Research Lab will use the findings and is part of a high-speed 3D ballistic imaging lab that was inmaterial to protect soldiers and vehicles in combat. stalled in the basement of Moser Hall last March. Only two To create more effective force protection, Vuksanovich other academic labs in the nation have the same 3D video said, researchers are looking for a lighter, yet equally strong analysis capabilities. version of the materials used now. The materials they’re testVisit www.ysumagazine.org for a video on the Ballistics Lab.

Grant Totals Near $9 Million Mark University faculty and staff garnered $8.7 million in grants in fiscal year 2011, 20 percent more than last year and the second highest total in YSU history. “It’s quite an accomplishment,” said Peter Kasvinsky, dean of the School of Graduate Studies and Research.

External fund totals secured by YSU faculty and staff over the past 15 years have grown more than sevenfold, from $1.2 million in 1996 to $8.7 million in 2011. In the last five years alone, the amount has nearly doubled, from $4.8 million in 2006. The highest single year was $11.7 million in 2009.

Kasvinsky said the growth was initiated by the establishment of the Office of Grants and Sponsored Programs in 1995. “That was the historical beginning of our emphasis on funded research,” he said.

Among the highlights of the 2011 grants: • The College of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics received $5.6 million in awards, including three in excess of $1 million each: Darrell Wallace, assistant professor of mechanical engineering, $1.6 million from the Ohio Department of Development for the Wright Center for Sensor Systems Engineering; Tim Wagner, professor of chemistry, $1.2 million from the Department of De-

fense, Army Research Laboratory; and Clovis Linkous, professor of Fiscal year Amount chemistry, $1 million from the U.S. Depart1995 $738,249 ment of Energy for the 2000 $3.5 million Advanced Automotive 2005 $4.6 million Fuels Research, Development and Commer2010 $7.2 million cialization Cluster.

2011 $8.7 million • YSU’s Public Service Institute, which consists of six employees, increased its level of funding by 49 percent over the previous year to more than $1.4 million.

In particular, Ricky George, associate director of the Center for Human Services Development, garnered four grants of $200,000 each from the Ohio Department of Education for 21st Century After-School Programs. In addition, the U.S. Department of Justice awarded grants of $157,000 for Weed & Seed programs in Youngstown and Warren.

• The U.S. Department of Education awarded $200,000 to Regina Rees, associate professor of Teacher Education, for the Social-Emotional Learning Project.

Grant Growth

FALL 2011

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Around Campus

Trust Creates $450,000 Scholarship Endowment

A trust fund established by the late Mahoning County Common Pleas Court Judge Erskine Maiden Jr. has donated $450,000 to YSU to provide scholarships for students in Mahoning County.

“I never had the privilege of meeting Judge Maiden, but this donation makes it obvious that he loved this community and recognized the importance Erskine Maiden Jr. of higher education,” said YSU President Cynthia E. Anderson. “This scholarship will help many students pursue their educational and professional aspirations. I want to thank Judge Maiden, as well as the Youngstown Foundation, for this generous gift.”

Maiden, born in 1891, was a 1909 graduate of The Rayen School in Youngstown and earned a bachelor’s degree from Harvard College. He attended Harvard University Law School, earned a law degree from the Law School of Case Western University in Cleveland, and was made a judge of the Mahoning County Common Pleas bench in 1930. He was president of the Union League of Youngstown and a member of the Youngstown Kiwanis Club and the Free and Accepted Masons. He taught at the Youngstown College School of Law for 28 years.

Prior to his death in August 1967, Maiden made provisions to establish a trust at the Youngstown Foundation upon the death of his surviving wife, Irene. Mrs. Maiden died on Oct. 18, 1991, and the trust was established, with the proceeds going to fund scholarships at YSU for needy students living in Youngstown. The trust specifies that the funds would be gifted to YSU two decades after the death of Mrs. Maiden.

Visit www.ysumagazine.org for video of the Maiden Trust Fund news conference.

Honorary Society Earns National Excellence Award

For the second consecutive year, Phi Kappa Phi Chapter 143 at YSU has earned the honor society’s 2010-2011 Chapter of Excellence Award, one of just 11 chapters nationwide to be recognized.

The award, earned under the leadership of Becky Geltz, president and director of Institutional Research at YSU, recognizes Chapter 143’s success in promoting academic excellence in all fields of higher education and engaging the community of scholars in service to others.

YSU’s Phi Kappa Phi chapter has inducted more than 3,000 students, faculty, professional staff and honorary members since it was chartered in 1972. The chapter also administers several local scholarships and award programs, through which it has presented thousands of dollars in scholarships and awards over the years, and its members have earned national scholarships and awards as well.

With 296 active chapters across the U.S., Puerto Rico and the Philippines and more than a million members, Phi Kappa Phi is the nation’s largest and most selective, all-discipline honor society. Well known Phi Kappa Phi members include President Jimmy Carter, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, author John Grisham, YouTube co-founder Chad Hurley and broadcast journalist Deborah Norville.

Sculpture Overhead at Williamson Hall Artists Gregory Miguel Gomez and Peter Andruchow created the new sculpture that is suspended from the three-story-tall atrium ceiling in Williamson Hall, home of the Williamson College of Business Administration. Made of welded stainless steel and black anodized cast aluminum, the sculpture is titled Corpus Mirabile, meaning “wondrous body.” The sculpture was funded through the Ohio Percent for Art Program, which requires that one percent of the funds appropriated for state construction projects be set aside for the acquisition or commissioning and installation of permanent original works of art. Williamson Hall, the largest capital improvement project in YSU’s 102-year history, opened for classes in fall 2010.

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Around Campus

Rooftop Solar Panels Generate Electrical Power for YSU An array of solar panels nearly the size of two tennis courts has been installed on the roof of YSU’s Moser Hall, and the new addition is expected to generate about 64,000 kilowatt hours of electricity annually, enough to power as many as eight homes for an entire year.

The 4,100-square-foot solar photovoltaic array was installed free of charge by Carbon Vision LLC of Shaker Heights, Ohio, thanks to state and federal grants aimed at fostering green power generation. YSU plans to use the system to generate power for Moser Hall and as a teaching tool for students in the College of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics. Moser Hall is the home of the STEM college.

“This solar-energy system, located right here on the roof of Moser Hall, provides a perfect real-world teaching laboratory for our students as they learn about new and upcoming technology as it relates to alternative energy,” said Martin Abraham, STEM dean.

The system was installed under an agreement in which Carbon Vision owns, operates and maintains the array while YSU purchases the energy from Carbon Vision. YSU’s rate in the purchase agreement is equal to that of power otherwise generated from fossil fuels, but at the end of the six-year contract, YSU will own the system and will generate power free of charge. The life expectancy of the system is 25 years.

Carbon Vision, which has installed similar systems at other schools across Ohio, estimates the energy savings for YSU over the life of the system will be about $160,000.

The solar panel system, the first of its kind to be installed at YSU, is mounted to the roof of Moser Hall using the Solar FlexRack system developed by Northern State Metals, a Youngstown-based metal fabricating and alternative energy firm. Last year, Northern State Metals and YSU entered into a research partnership that included the donation of a wind tunnel and other laboratory equipment to the university to conduct tests on the Solar FlexRack and other products.

Plans for the solar array were announced a year ago during a news conference with U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown. It took a team of two to five people about five weeks this summer to install the array. The panels are pointed to From the left, YSU President Cynthia E. Anderson, STEM Dean Martin Abraham and U.S. Rep. Tim the south to maximize Ryan chat after the news conference unveiling the exposure to the sun. solar array on the roof of Moser Hall.

What’s

On Stage

University Theater opened the 2011-12 season with Reasons to be Pretty, a comedy/ drama that ran Sept. 8-11 in Spotlight Arena Theater in Bliss Hall, followed by A Streetcar Named Desire, which ran Sept. 29 through Oct. 9. Here’s the rest of the theater and dance performance schedule for this season:

Students Kayla Boye and Tony Genovese, playing the roles of Stella and Stanley Kowalski in “A Streetcar Named Desire.”

• The 1940s Radio Hour – a musical, Nov. 10-13 and Nov. 18-20 in Ford Theater.

• Riff Raff – a Second Stage production, Jan. 26-29 in Spotlight Arena Theater.

• Medea – a tragedy, Feb. 23-26; March 2-4 in Ford Theater.

• Early One Evening at the Rainbow Bar & Grille – a comedy/drama, April 5-7 and April 12-15 in Spotlight Arena Theater.

• One-Act Operas: Rita; Dido and Aneus – April 19-22 in Ford Theater.

• YSU Dance Ensemble – May 3-5 in Ford Theater.

Plot summaries are available on the Department of Theater Web page. All productions are held at Bliss Hall and all theaters are handicap accessible. For more details about this season’s productions and ticket prices, visit http://web.ysu.edu/fpa/theater. For ticket reservations, call the university theater box office, 330-941-3105.

FALL 2011

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Around Campus

EMT Program Enrolls 17 Saudi Arabian Students Hassan Al Nasif is a YSU student from Saudi Arabia May and are currently studying at the English Language with a lofty ambition: to work for one of the largest Institute at YSU before they enter the college community. corporations in the world. He’s just three semesters away All will eventually work as paramedics for one of Aramco’s from his goal. health care facilities set up through its Saudi Aramco Medical Al Nasif is part of a group of 17 Saudi Arabian students Services Organization. who are enrolled in YSU’s emergency medical technology While being away from their families has been difficult, program through Saudi Aramco. The world’s largest oil comthe students say they’ve been grateful for how well accepted pany with 55,000 employees, Saudi Aramco sponsors more they feel at YSU. than 1,000 high school graduates in Saudi Arabia to study at universities worldwide in a variety of disciplines. After earning their degrees abroad, the students work at Saudi Aramco either as full-time employees or to pay back their scholarships.

“This has given YSU new opportunities to expand culturally in its EMT program,” said Susan Kearns, program director. She added that YSU is one in only a handful of universities across the nation to host Saudi Aramco students studying emergency medical science.

Al Nasif, Yahya Asiri, Saad Buhalim, Waleed Awaji and Meshari Al Mutairi were the first class of Aramco scholarship recipients to come to YSU in 2009. Since then, they’ve passed the basic EMT course, completed 700 hours of clinical and ambulatory experience and have earned the prerequisite emergency medical technician certificate. They are now working toward an associate degree and national registry certification to become EMT Hassan Al Nasif, left, and Meshari Al Mutairi work in a lab in Cushwa Hall.

They are among 17 Saudi Arabian students enrolled in YSU’s EMT program paramedics. through Saudi Aramco.

Twelve additional Saudi students came to YSU last

Lincoln Deck Renovations Complete, New Lots Added

SMARTS Adds Rhythmic Arts Project Justin Robich, right, a sophomore in YSU’s early childhood education program, gets a high five from Ethan Niemczura, a student at Potential Development in Youngstown, during a demonstration of YSU SMARTS Rhythmic Arts Project. The program, a collaboration of YSU Students Motivated by the Arts and the CreativeBridge Coalition, uses percussion instruments and rhythm to teach basic life and learning skills to special-needs students in kindergarten through high school. The project is funded through the Hine Memorial Fund of the Youngstown Foundation. Eddie Tuduri, founder/director of the Rhythmic Arts Project, was at Potential Development in Youngstown to conduct training sessions, which were attended by several YSU students. The program was kicked off locally at a news conference that also was attended by Ray “Boom Boom” Mancini, former lightweight boxing champion and a member of the board of the Creative Coalition.

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Phase I of improvements to the Lincoln Deck was completed in time for the start of fall semester, and two new surface parking lots have also been added on campus.

The 1,300-space deck, which closed in the spring, underwent major structural improvements, including new ramps on the east and west sides, concrete repairs, waterproofing and repairs to fire suppression and drainage systems, said Danny O’Connell, director of Support Services.

O’Connell said the deck will be closed again next summer for Phase II, which will include aesthetic enhancements such as lighting, new stairwells, painting and fencing.

Also making its debut this academic year was a new, 120-space faculty and staff parking lot on the corner of Lincoln and Fifth avenues near Beeghly Hall. In addition, the M-26 lot west of Fifth Avenue between Lincoln and Rayen avenues was expanded to include 130 more spaces.

Xiaolou Yang Assistant Professor, Accounting and Finance Stock volatility, the impact of annual earnings announcement delays on stock performance, risk-taking investments and managerial incentives – these are just a few of the interests that have stimulated the innovative and analytical mind of Xiaolou Yang over the past few years. Her groundbreaking research in finance and investment theory and practice have lead to a plethora of prestigious, scholarly publications and presentations at conferences in China, England and across the United States.

Yang’s passion for research and analysis is equaled by her love of teaching and mentoring her students as an assistant professor in the Lariccia School of Accounting and Finance at YSU. Today she is an enthusiastic champion of students who share her zeal for the study of finance. “Many of my students are very gifted scholars, already pursuing advanced research projects and studies,” she notes. “So many Youngstown State students are very hard-working and serious about their studies.”

As a very hard-working and serious student herself, Yang graduated from Jilin University in China with a bachelor’s degree in finance in 1996. She then moved to Austin, Texas, to continue her education, earning her master’s degree and a Ph.D. in financial economics at the University of Texas. Before coming to YSU in 2008, Yang spent two years as an assistant professor of finance at Humboldt State University in California.

In her recent research at YSU, Yang has pioneered the use of applied dynamic genetic algorithm – which is more commonly used in engineering, computer and biological research – for the study of investment strategies and performance.

Her studies indicate that dynamic genetic algorithm can be used to select the best possible financial portfolio because it is a problem-solving procedure that allows both forward-looking and backward-induction, incorporating historical information as well as future uncertainty. Compared to traditional approaches such as the classical mean-variance model, Yang said, dynamic genetic algorithm can significantly improve the accuracy of return estimation and thus can improve overall portfolio efficiency and model performance.

Yang’s research acumen combined with her love of teaching industrious students make YSU a great fit for her, one that is likely to pay handsome dividends to the university for years to come.

FALL 2011

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s s e c c Su STUDENT

Highlighting the achievements of exceptional YSU students

S T O R I E S

Sax Quartet Takes First in State

The Dana School of Music Saxophone Quartet took first place in Ohio at the Music Teachers National Association Collegiate Chamber Music Competition, held at Bowling Green State University in early October.

Quartet members (from left) are: Mark Higgins of Pittsburgh, Pa., soprano saxophone and junior instrumental performance major; Brian Newell of Peoria, Ill., alto saxophone and first-year grad student in saxophone performance; Kevin Snyder of Pittsburgh, Pa., tenor saxophone and junior music performance major; and Aaron Lockhart of Rochester, N.Y., baritone saxophone and senior saxophone performance major.

The four musicians now advance to the East Central Division regional competition, set for early January at Western Michigan University in Kalamazoo, Mich., where they will compete against state champions from Illinois, Indiana, Michigan and Wisconsin. The winner will go on to compete in the nationals against the winners of five other regional competitions.

Seniors Nominated for Prestigious Scholarship

Two YSU seniors – Mario Sracic of Hermitage, Pa. (right), and Kevin Hulick of Austintown – have been nominated for the prestigious Marshall Scholarship. The scholarship program was created by an act of Parliament and selects up to 40 young American students of high ability to study for a graduate degree in England.

Sracic, a mathematics major with a dual minor in computer science and statistics, tutors at YSU’s Mathematics Assistance Center. He is a member of the Leslie H. Cochran University Scholars Program and the YSU Honors Program.

Having won regional and national awards for mathematics competitions, Sracic also completed a Research Experience for Undergraduates at Kansas State University this summer.

Hulick, who has a double major in political science and economics, is a recipient of the Dean’s Scholarship and various competitive scholarship awards. He has also won national awards for his performances in moot court competitions and for the briefs he has written in conjunction with them.

Two Win Honors, Nine Present at MathFest

Nine undergraduate YSU students made presentations and two won awards at the Annual Summer Meeting of the Mathematical Association of America and Pi Mu Epsilon, better known as MathFest, held in Lexington, Ky., this summer. The YSU presenters were, from left: Tara Sansom, Sarah Ritchey, Sepideh Khavari, Dan Catello (kneeling), Michael Coates, Bradley Slabe, Mario Sracic, Matt Alexander and Jason Cooke. Sracic’s presentation on Cryptology and Quantum Computing won an award for excellence in exposition and research sponsored by the American Mathematical Society and the American Statistical Association. Khavari’s presentation, titled “Time-to-Peak Response in Biological Systems,” won the Janet L. Anderson Award for outstanding exposition and research in mathematical and computational biology sponsored by the MAA Special Interest Group in Mathematical Biology.

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http://web.ysu.edu/studentsuccessstories

your Letters.

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

Dear Editor,

I recently visited my brother, a YSU graduate now living in the Baltimore area, and picked up the summer issue of Youngstown State University - A Magazine for Alumni and Friends sitting on his coffee table. I was intrigued by the section entitled “Alumni Spotlight,” and I thought I would pass along a story with a different David Zarlenga flavor, one that happened right in your own backyard.

My big brother, Dante “Danny” Zarlenga, is a 1976 graduate of YSU and a former student body vice president who went on to get his Ph.D. in biochemistry at the University of Cincinnati. Shortly after moving to Cincinnati to start his doctoral studies he became ill, was diagnosed with cancer and told he needed immediate surgery. Doctors at the Cleveland Clinic operated on my brother twice; he was advised to undergo two years of intensive chemotherapy and told that the life expectancy rate for his disease was only a few years.

These were truly life and death decisions he had to confront. Danny chose to have his treatment transferred to Cincinnati so he could continue his graduate studies there – he wanted to be away from home so our parents would not have to watch him go through the treatment. He underwent Dante Zarlenga, ’76 chemotherapy as an outpatient, receiving injections two times a week every three weeks for the next two years. He never missed a beat with respect to his studies, despite suffering very unpleasant physical side effects from the chemo.

The story does not end there. Danny’s health insurance paid just 80 percent of his expenses during the first year of his illness and stopped paying altogether in the second year. My brother had to find a way to pay more than $900 a month to continue his chemotherapy, so he taught classes at the university and brought out his drums to play in a band several days a week, all the while working on his Ph.D. Well, Danny completed his doctorate, got married, did some post graduate work at Johns Hopkins Hospital, then accepted a job as a researcher for the U.S. Department of Agriculture, where he was named “Scientist of the Year” some years back. My brother has published hundreds of research papers, co-authored several books and has seven or eight U.S. patents to his name.

I once “Googled” his name and quickly realized that when he spoke about himself, he was dramatically understating his accomplishments and his contributions to the scientific community.

His illness left him unable to have children, so he and my sister-in-law, Gloria, adopted my nephew and niece from Korea – two wonderful kids. His reason was because he wanted to give some unfortunate children the same chances and opportunities he had been given. It was heartwarming to see that my brother was finally getting on with his life.

I thought I would tell you about one of your own, an unsung YSU hero and internationally recognized scientist. I think his is a success story worth telling. In closing, it is clear that this is not an unbiased letter.

Danny is my big brother; however, he is my big brother by blood ... but he is my hero by choice.

Summer 2011 issue

Dave F. Zarlenga Dante Zarlenga, ’76 AB, is a microbiologist in molecular parasitology for the USDA’s Agricultural Research Service. His brother and the letter writer, Dave Zarlenga, is a CPA who lives in Concord, Ohio, and works in Willoughby, a suburb of Cleveland.

FALL 2011

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Growing by

Degrees:

Five New Programs Added in 2011

By Cynthia Vinarsky Change is a constant on the YSU campus – new landmarks, new buildings, new faculty, new students – and new degree programs.

As part of a continuing effort to grow and evolve academically, YSU has added 21 new degrees over the past decade to meet the needs of students, the professions they aspire to, and the communities they will serve after graduation.

In fact, five of those new degree programs were approved in 2011: the Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in Materials Science and Engineering; the Educational Specialist Degree in School Psychology; the Master of Respiratory Care; the Bachelor of Arts in Dance Management; and the Bachelor of Science in Dental Hygiene.

Overall, YSU now offers 117 bachelor’s and associate degree programs, 41 master’s programs, one specialist degree and three doctorates.

“Before any of these new programs could be approved, the university had to show that they address state, regional and global needs,” explained Bege Bowers, associate provost for academic programs and planning. “Each of the five new programs builds on YSU’s existing strengths and resources.”

Dressed in protective gear, a student removes a composite sample from a molten metal She said the new degree programs help to fulfill bath. The work is part of a collaborative research project with Fireline TCON, one of the university’s mission by advancing civic, scientific several local companies that partner with YSU. and technological development and by generally enriching the region and the world.

And now, as YSU transitions into its new role as an urThe number of graduate degrees on campus is growing faster ban research university, Kasvinsky maintains that advanced than undergraduate degrees, and it’s doubled since Peter Kasvindegrees are even more crucial. “You cannot have an urban sky, dean of Graduate Studies and Research, arrived at YSU in research institution without a strong graduate program. It’s 1993. “When I got here, there hadn’t been a new master’s degree absolutely critical to our reputation,” he said. in 24 years,” he recalled.

Kasvinsky revealed that three more advanced-degree Enrollment was down at the time, and Kasvinsky pushed for proposals are already “in the pipeline.” Faculty are working adding more graduate degrees as a way to attract students. He toward university and state approval of an MA program in argues that advanced degrees are still an effective tool for buildInterdisciplinary Communications, an MA program in Gering enrollment. “Not many students in our region go elsewhere for ontology and a Doctorate program in Nursing Practice. graduate education. We’re it,” he said.

Meanwhile, faculty and staff across campus are at YSU’s graduate student numbers have been rising steadily, work, getting the five most recently approved academic now comprising about 10 percent of the total enrollment, based programs up and running.

Here are the stories behind YSU’s on head count, and Kasvinsky said he’s also noticed a dramatic newest degrees: increase in the number of full-time grad students.

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YSU’s First Ph.D. Program

Doctor of Philosophy in Materials Science and Engineering Faculty in the College of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics had some challenging parameters to work with when they started three years ago to put together a plan for the university’s first Ph.D. program. To be practical, they wanted to limit the number of new faculty needed for the program, so they aimed to create an interdisciplinary degree, one that could use professors from several different disciplines to teach and advise students. Secondly, they wanted to include an economic development aspect to the program by partnering with local businesses.

“We didn’t have enough research faculty for a Ph.D. program in any one area, but the core departments – mechanical, chemical, electrical and civil engineering, chemistry and physics – they all work with materials,” said Hazel Marie, program director and associate professor of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering. “So, materials science and engineering was an obvious match.”

STEM faculty envisioned a program that would prepare graduates to work in industry or in academia, so they included an optional, but recommended, 600-hour research internship with a local industrial partner. “That’s a unique part of our program. The student must be doing research on materials during their internship, and ideally, their Ph.D. dissertation would come from that research,” Marie said. “We have partnerships already with companies in the area working with ceramics, metals, alloys and ceramic-metal composites.

That’s our niche, but nothing says we can’t expand later.”

YSU President Cynthia E. Anderson said the new program builds upon the Mahoning Valley’s long and storied history in materials sciences. “This new Ph.D. is yet another step in YSU’s evolution into a research institution that has the potential to have a significant impact on the economic future of the entire region,” she said.

Martin Abraham, dean of the College of STEM and one of 19 who will serve as faculty Post-doctoral student Steve Rhoden conducts for the new Ph.D. program, said research in a STEM College chemistry lab. The college is taking applications now for its first it follows and builds on a series Ph.D. program. of other research milestones that YSU and STEM have achieved recently. “This new program supports the university’s ongoing efforts in technology-based economic development and positions this region as a leader in 21st century materials technology,” Abraham said.

The STEM college is accepting applications now for the four-year Ph.D. program, and classes will begin in fall of 2012. Marie said the

New Degree Programs The number of advanced degrees added at YSU has begun to outpace the number of undergraduate degrees, reflecting the university’s effort to fulfill its mission as an urban research institution. These 21 new degree programs were added over the last decade: Graduate Degrees • Master of Education in Intervention Services/Educational Specialist in School Psychology – 2011 • Master of Respiratory Care – 2011 • Ph.D. in Materials Science and Engineering – 2011 • Doctor of Physical Therapy – 2008 • Master of Science in Applied Behavior Analysis – 2008 • Master of Arts in Art Education – 2008 • Master of Computing and Information Systems – 2005 • Master of Arts in Financial Economics – 2005 • Master of Arts in American Studies – 2005 • Northeast Ohio Universities Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing – 2004 • Master of Social Work – 2002 Baccalaureate Degrees • Bachelor of Science in Dental Hygiene – 2011 • Bachelor of Arts in Dance Management – 2011 • Bachelor of Arts in Gerontology – 2008 • Bachelor of General Studies – 2005 • Bachelor of Applied Science in Forensic Science – 2003 • Bachelor of Science in Management Information Systems – 2003 • Bachelor of Science in Human Resource Management – 2003

Associate Degrees • Associate of Technical Study in Business Technology – 2003 • Associate of Technical Study in Power Plant Technology – 2003 • Associate of Technical Study in Electric Utility Technology – 2002

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program will accept three new students in each of the first two years, working up to four new Ph.D. candidates per year.

Marie said the quality and enthusiasm of the candidates selected is important to the future of the program. “It is critical that we pick people who are ambitious, hard-working and creative, and it is just as critical that we have hard-working professors,” she said. “We need both for the program to snowball and become really successful.”

The university offers two other doctoral-level degrees, an Ed.D. in Educational Administration and a Doctor of Physical Therapy. For more details on the Ph.D. program, visit www.ysu.edu/stem/phd/.

Meeting a Critical Shortage

Educational Specialist Degree in School Psychology

internship in a public school district. Because of Ohio’s critical need for school psychologists, Ellenwood explained, the Ohio Department of Education funds a number of paid internships for graduate students preparing to be school psychologists.

“Ohio has basically said, ‘We will help fund your education during the internship year, but you will be expected to serve in Ohio for at least one year following the internship year to help meet the high demand for school psycholgists,’” she said.

YSU included letters of endorsement from more than 75 school districts across the region when it began applying for program approval from the state. “Those letters, along with a statewide needs assessment that we conducted, helped to make our case that there is a need in this region and in the state,” said Richard VanVoorhis, assistant professor of Special Education and Counseling and primary faculty for the new program.

“We are most grateful for the tremendous support we received from our school partners,” said Mary Lou DiPillo, interim dean of the Beeghly College. “We look forward to working with these school districts as we place our candidates in field and clinical sites.”

School psychologists are in short supply regionally, across Ohio, nationally – even internationally. YSU will prepare students to fill that critical need with its new, three-year graduate-level school psychology program, the first school psychology program established in the state in more than 40 years.

Audrey Ellenwood, program director and a professor in the Beeghly College of Education, said YSU’s program is one of a small number in the U.S. that will focus on low-incidence disabilities, which can include blindness, deafness, and autism, along with the more typical training in high-incidence disabilities, such as speech and language impairments and learning disabilities.

“Getting the degree approved was a challenge, and it’s very prestigious for YSU,” she said. “This is the first Ed.S. degree on campus, and it is considered a higher level degree than a master’s.”

The program is accepting applications now, with classes set to begin in July 2012. Graduates will earn two degrees: a Master’s of Education in Intervention Services and an Educational Specialist Degree in School Melanie East, a graduate student in the Beeghly College of Education, works with a child on communication and Psychology. social skill development using a computer game. The college has added an Educational Specialist Degree program YSU’s program will in School Psychology. include a paid one-year 12

YOUNGSTOWN STATE UNIVERSITY

Students in the Respiratory Care program practice medical procedures on a training mannequin. The Bitonte College of Health and Human Services is adding a master’s degree program in respiratory therapy.

The program is designed to enroll cohorts of 12 fulltime students per year. Visit the Beeghly College of Education website at web.ysu.edu/bcoe for more details.

First in Ohio, Third in the Nation Master of Respiratory Care

Administrators in the Bitonte College of Health and Human Services expect to receive applications from all over the country when YSU launches its new Master of Respiratory Care program, the first in Ohio and only the third of its kind in the nation.

Approved by Chancellor Jim Petro in May, the program will be open only to licensed respiratory therapists who are seeking an advanced degree. The Master of Respiratory Care will prepare graduates for positions in health care administration, management, research and education, said Joe Mistovich, chair of the Department of Health Professions in Cushwa Hall where the new degree program will be housed.

Health Professions offered a two-year associate degree program in respiratory therapy until 2000, when it transitioned to a bachelor’s degree program – currently one of four BS degrees in respiratory care in Ohio. The department will continue to offer the BS program in respiratory care when the MS degree program begins.

Mistovich said the department intends to search for a new Ph.D.-level faculty member to run the master’s program, so an official start date for the program has not been deter-

mined. The program will be selective, accepting approximately 20 students per year.

The demand for respiratory therapists is already strong, and the Bureau of Labor Statistics projects 20-percent growth over the next decade. The need is growing because the population of older adults is growing, said Mistovich, and therapists are also being asked to take on more complex responsibilities.

Right now, he said, there are four MS degree programs in respiratory care available nationwide, but two of them are entry-level programs that train students for starting positions as respiratory therapists. YSU’s program, in contrast, will accept only credentialed and experienced respiratory therapists seeking advanced education.

YSU’s application for state approval of the new master’s degree program was endorsed by three major professional organizations: the American Association of Respiratory Care, The Committee on Accreditation for Respiratory Care and the National Board for Respiratory Care. For more details on the program, contact the Department of Health Professions, 330941-3327.

YSU’s First Dance Major

Bachelor of Arts in Dance Management YSU senior Kaitlyn Fabian has been dreaming of a career in dance since she was 10, but the 4.0 student from Boardman listed her major as “undecided” when she started classes three

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Senior Dance Management major Kaitlyn Fabian, at far left in photo above and at right, teaches a ballet class at Chaney High School’s visual performing arts program in Youngstown.

The BA degree in Dance Management was recently added in the College of Fine and Performing Arts.

years ago under YSU’s University Scholar program because a dance major wasn’t available. Later, when she learned that the College of Fine and Performing Arts was developing a bachelor’s degree program in Dance Management – its first ever dance major – Fabian and a few other students began taking classes that would be part of the new curriculum.

This spring, she’ll be the first to graduate with the new Dance Management degree, Visit www. ysumagazine.org approved by the state in March. “The timing for video on the was perfect for me,” Fabian said. “I finally Dance Management Degree. had a major to declare.” She plans to find work in a dance studio at first and eventually to use the dance education and business training her degree provides to open her own, Christian faith-based dance school.

A total of nine students have been accepted under the new Dance Management major this fall; the program is capped at 20 students, and a dance audition is required.

Frank Castronovo, chair of the Department of Theater and Dance, said the new degree is the only one of its kind among Ohio’s public universities. An interdisciplinary program, its curriculum is made up of dance and available at other Ohio universities. He found three other dance teaching classes, theater classes and business courses. schools around the country that offer dance management proThe business curriculum comprises 25 percent of the total and grams, and that gave him the idea to partner with the business was designed in partnership with the Williamson College of college.

Business Administration.

Chris Cobb, administrative coordinator of the Dance ManWhen Castronovo began exploring the idea of adding a agement program and an associate professor, said the degree is dance major about five years ago, he knew he would have to designed for entrepreneurial purposes. “This program enhances find a way to work with the existing number of dance faculty students’ dance technique, but it’s designed for students whose and with the existing dance studio facilities. He also wanted primary goal is to teach rather than perform, students who to avoid duplicating the dance performance degrees already want to own and operate a dance studio,” she said.

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F&PA Dean Bryan DePoy likes the practical nature of the degree. “Many students in Fine and Performing Arts disciplines go on to be self-employed,” he said. “This degree will provide some of the skills Dance Management majors will need to start and run their own businesses.”

Betty Jo Licata, dean of the Williamson College, said the business school’s entrepreneurship courses are designed to complement any major on campus. “This is the first program to require these courses as a part of a major,” she said. “Kudos to the dance faculty for their entrepreneurial thinking!”

For more details on the Dance Management degree program, visit web.ysu.edu/fpa/theater.

Getting Ready for Changing Roles

to enter the associate program directly out of high school because the curriculum is so rigorous, and many waited a year or more to be accepted because of its restricted enrollment.

“We’ve had students attending the university for three to four years to complete an associate degree,” said Haggerty.

“Now, in the same amount of time, students will be able to complete a bachelor's degree in dental hygiene and be prepared to pursue a master's degree.”

Students in YSU’s dental hygiene program get handson experience working in a dental clinic on the first floor of Cushwa Hall, the only clinic on campus. The clinic provides free preventative dental services to the public and gets an average of 2,700 patient visits annually, with a dentist always on hand to supervise. When the bachelor’s program is in place, Mistovich said, patient visit numbers are expected to top 3,400 a year. To learn more about the baccalaureate in Dental Hygiene, contact the Department of Health Professions at 330-941-3327.

Dental care is in short supply in many communities across the country, and that’s prompting legislators to give dental hygienists more freedom and more responsibility. Ohio lawmakers, for instance, approved changes this year allowing qualified dental hygienists to provide limited, unsupervised dental care in schools, prisons and other facilities, and 20 other states have approved similar regulations.

YSU’s new baccalaureate program in Dental Hygiene will prepare graduates for changes that are coming in their profession, said Joe Mistovich, chair of the Department of Health Professions in the Bitonte College of Health and Human Services. The BS degree will replace the Associate of Applied Science degree in Dental Hygiene by Spring 2013.

Mistovich said the dental hygiene faculty has been planning curriculum and working through the approval process for the new bachelor’s program for several years. YSU will be the second university in Ohio to offer a baccalaureate degree in dental hygiene and one of only 29 schools in the U.S. to do so.

“We are positioning YSU to be a leader in the state, definitely, and also in the country,” he said. “Hygienists are being asked to do more as technology improves and as the clinical demands on them increase. The bachelor’s degree will give our students courses with more depth and breadth, and better opportunities to branch out and compete for jobs.”

YSU’s dental hygiene program is named after Madeleine Haggerty, its longtime director. She said that, historically, few students have chosen

Photo by Alina Rios, student intern

Bachelor of Science in Dental Hygiene

Nicole Bodnar, a first-year student in the associate degree program in Dental Hygiene, uses a dental training simulator model to practice her skills. A bachelor's degree in Dental Hygiene will replace the associate program in spring 2013.

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Specializing in ‘A-Ha!’ Moments

By Andrea Armeni

Students and faculty collaborate to produce an episode of Homework Express, a live homeworkassistance TV show.

20x = 30. It’s the algebra problem that prompts a stumped ninth-grade student from Cleveland to call into an early October episode of Homework Express for help.

One of the television show’s on-air teachers writes the equation on a computerized white board and begins patiently walking the student through the first steps of solving it. After a few questions and unsuccessful guesses, the caller finally announces to the smiling teacher, “Ohhh … I get it!”

Chalk up another “A-ha!” moment for Homework Express.

Since its first episode in 2005, Homework Express has been specializing in these moments of illumination when students suddenly connect with a math concept.

“It’s the best part of our job – to hear that “A-ha!” moment,” says Kelly Stevens, host of Homework Express. “It’s that point when we know that the caller gets it, something’s clicked for them.”

They’re what have helped the live homework-assistance TV show soar into its seventh season this September, now reaching more than 1 million households in Northeastern Ohio and Western Pennsylvania through Time Warner and Armstrong cable stations.

Run by faculty and students in the Telecommunications Studies program at YSU, the math-focused TV show began as an attempt to help middle school students in the region prepare to meet the Ohio Academic Content Standards in mathematics.

“We saw a need for a math-focused show because of the lower average math scores on the Ohio Graduation Tests,” said Fred Owens, project director of Homework Express and a 16

YOUNGSTOWN STATE UNIVERSITY

professor of Communication at YSU. “Then when the phone lines started to ring and didn’t stop during our first two pilot episodes, we knew we had something.”

Combining a question-and-answer format with mini features, Homework Express strikes a balance between teaching specific problems and general concepts in math. Add in local high school shout-outs, guest appearances and prize giveaways, and it’s a recipe for success in attracting viewers, one that has even scored two regional Emmy Award nominations.

The show’s success also accounts for its growth. Started small in Youngstown on Time Warner Cable, Homework Express expanded to reach all of Mahoning County in its third season when Armstrong Cable picked it up. Soon after, the show hit its big break on Time Warner’s NEON Network, airing in Akron, Canton, Cleveland, Western Pennsylvania and the Mahoning Valley—a total of 1.1 million households.

Bill Brophy, executive producer of Homework Express, sees the continuing growth in terms of hard work and unique ideas.

“Basically, seven years means we’re darn persistent,” said Brophy. “It’s the fact that we’ve been able to expand and not just survive that means a lot at this point, particularly in this economy.”

With the help of several state-wide sponsors and partners, Homework Express aired 62 live, half-hour shows last season, running repeat shows during the week, as well. In addition, it streams live on the Web and features archived shows at www.homeworkexpress.org.

Brophy explains that, while the show mainly targets students in grades five through eight, Homework Express also has broader goals.

“Our secondary audience is the general public – the parents, grandparents and teachers watching the show to learn how to help their kids. We have to figure out how to attract our audiences, keep them, educate them and entertain them,” said Brophy.

But the team has had no problems interacting with viewers. Homework Express has attracted callers from Texas, California and even Paris, France. Viewers have Skyped and emailed the show, and Homework Express teachers answered 254 direct calls from students in elementary school through college last year. Stevens, who also hosts the morning show of Youngstown’s HOT 101 radio station, even remembers an adult caller who needed help preparing for the math section of a civil service test; he was studying to become a firefighter.

And when the cameras stop rolling? Brophy, Owens and Stevens recognize that a talented crew is a driving force for Homework Express.

“We decided early on that the key to success would be using professionals who would bring the show to a higher level,” along with a capable and creative student crew, said Owens.

The mix of professionals and students makes for a great learning opportunity, said Brophy, who has had student crew members go on to careers at WFMJ, WKBN, FOX Sports and other prominent TV networks.

A student-produced show is one quality that sets Homework Express apart from other similar programs. Another, Brophy says, is that they’ve avoided producing “the hourlong Q&A show” that others have tried. He said the team constantly brings exciting new material to the table to make the show something “you still might want to watch even if you’re not doing your math homework.”

For its seventh season, Homework Express has more in store, teaming up with YSU’s College of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics to feature live lab demonstrations. The new partnership aims to demonstrate connections between math and science, said Owens, while engaging another university department in the production.

Brophy’s long-term goal is to expand statewide, gaining access to more channels and increasing to three live shows per week. But he and Owens agree that the show will not stray from its math roots.

“Answering questions on medieval French literature doesn’t require a SMART Board,” Owens jokes. “It’s inherently not visual, and it doesn’t have the problem-solving essence that math does.”

Overall, he remains happy with the show’s current success.

“The fact that we’re in 33 counties and available to over a million homes means we’re doing something right,” he said.

Brophy agrees, but measures the show’s seven-year milestone by a smaller ruler, too.

“The biggest thing we try to accomplish is not necessarily producing the most earth-shattering show,” he said, “but producing a show that’s honorable and done well within our resources. We want our little corner to be valuable to somebody, someplace—to Ohio’s next great inventor just waiting to have somebody light a little fire underneath.”

On-air teachers and the program host wait on the Homework Express set (top photo) while crew members work behind the scene.

www.homeworkexpress.org

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faculty B O O K S H E L F

Faculty Bookshelf is featured once a year in YSU Magazine to celebrate the successes of YSU faculty and staff who have recently published new books, released new musical CDs, or displayed their work in major art exhibitions.

The Old South’s Modern Worlds: Slavery, Region, and Nation in the Age of Progress, co-edited by Diane Barnes, associate professor, History, and associate editor of the Frederick Douglass Papers, Brian Schoen and Frank Towers. Published by Oxford University Press, April 2011, 352 pages. The book uses a series of essays to reveal ways that antebellum southerners were enmeshed in modernizing trends of their time.

The book also explores the compatibility of slavery with cultural and material markers of modernity such as moral reform, cities and industry.

Listening Myths: Applying Second Language Research to Classroom Teaching, by Steven Brown, professor, English. Published by University of Michigan Press in 2011, 195 pages. The book refutes eight myths about listening in a foreign language.

It synthesizes what we know about the listening process and shows how that knowledge can be applied to classrooms.

Applying Second Language Research to Classroom Teaching

Steven Brown

Ain’t So Bad to Swing, a musical recording by Jeff Bush, jazz studies instructor, Dana School of Music. Released by Beezwax Records, April 2010.

Bush, who joined YSU this fall as part-time faculty, included 11 musical selections in this, his debut recording.

The trombonist leads a sextet in performing what he describes as classic jazz and swing.

Intercultural Sensitivity in Foreign Student Advising: A Quantitative Analysis of Ethnocentrism Within the Profession in the Post–9/11 Era, by Jef Davis, director, Center for International Studies and Programs. Published by VDM Verlag Publishing House, February 2010, 184 pages. The author examines changes in the role of foreign student advisors in U.S. colleges and universities and what he sees as pervasive ethnocentrism in his profession since 9/11. He challenges some common beliefs about cultural sensitivity.

Reorienting the Manchus: A Study of Sinicization, 1583-1795,

by Pei Huang, professor emeritus, History. Published by Cornell University’s East Asian Program, 2011, 374 pages. The book analyzes the ways that the Manchus, founders of the Qing empire, accommodated themselves to the Chinese way of life and their influence over China.

The Manchus comprise a major ethnic minority group in China today.

International Business in the 21st Century, general editor Bruce D. Keillor, associate professor, Marketing and International Business. Published by Praeger Publishing, May 2011, 1,000 pages. This three-volume set covers all aspects of international business, from export preparedness through effective international operations and current topics in international business. The 45 chapters were authored by business leaders, respected academics and elected officials.

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YOUNGSTOWN STATE UNIVERSITY

Winning in the Global Market: A Practical Guide to Success in International Business, by Bruce D. Keillor, associate professor, Marketing and International Business. Published by Praeger Publishing, November 2011, 202 pages.

A practical guide to success in international business targeted for managers and business owners

considering a venture into international markets or looking to improve their firm’s international operations.

Investigations into Economic Class in America and Facilitator Notes, coauthored by Karla Krodel, director, Metro Credit Outreach Education, and Philip DeVol. Published by Aha Process Inc., summer 2011, book has 280 pages, facilitator notes has 186.

Investigations is a sequenced curriculum designed to help first-generation, lowincome students succeed in college. The book set was presented the Association of Educational Publishers’ 2011 Distinguished Achievement Winner award in the adult curriculum category and was a finalist in two other award categories.

Literary Learning – Teaching the English Major, by Sherry Lee Linkon, professor, English.

Published by Indiana University Press, August 2011, 182 pages.

The text explores the nature of literary knowledge and offers guidance for effective teaching of literature at the college level.

By identifying habits that literary scholars use in their research and writing, the author offers important insights and models for beginning and experienced teachers.

Transition Series: Topics for the EMT, by Joe Mistovich, professor and chair, Health Professions, and Daniel Limmer. Published by Brady/ Pearson, March 2011, 390 pages. Intended for a new generation of EMTs and as a source of continuing education for practicing EMTs, this text provides a foundation of knowledge for the practice of pre-hospital care. Mistovich has published 13 books related to emergency medical services over the past 17 years.

Emergency Medical Patients: Assessment, Care, and Transport, by Joe Mistovich, professor and chair, Health Professions, with Alice Dalton, Daniel Limmer and Howard Werman. Published

by Brady/Pearson, April 2011, 508 pages. The book offers a practical approach to common medical emergencies and conforms to the 2010 American Heart Association guidelines. Presenting a realistic approach to the care of the patient, the text is intended for students with paramedic or other advanced-level training.

First Aid for Colleges and Universities, 10th edition, by Joe Mistovich, professor and chair, Health Professions, with Keith Karren, Brent Hafen and Daniel Limmer.

Published by Benjamin Cummings - Pearson, June 2011, 530 pages. Intended for students in a full-semester course leading to first aid/ CPR certification, the book meets American Red Cross guidelines and includes self-tests, critical thinking exercises and skill assessment checklists.

Action of Magnetohydrodynamics on the Detection of Mercury, by Yogendra Panta, assistant professor, Mechanical & Industrial Engineering.

Published by VDM Verlag Publishing House, September 2009, 100 pages. The book examines a novel way of applying electromagnetic fields for ultrasensitive detection of mercury ions in aqueous solutions.

Communication for Nurses: How to Prevent Harmful Events and Promote Patient Safety,

by Pamela Schuster, professor, Nursing, and L. Nykolyn. Published

by FA Davis, 2010, 201 pages. The book aims to guide the development of comprehensive professional communication strategies in nursing students to prevent communication errors that can result in patient injuries and death.

Concept Mapping: A Critical Thinking Approach to Care Planning, Third Edition, by Pamela Schuster, professor, Nursing. Published

by FA Davis, 2012. The book aims to help nursing students develop clinical concept care maps to plan and organize effective patient care.

Concept care maps developed by student nurses form the basis for a shared interdisciplinary model, patient-safe interdisciplinary communication and sound clinical judgments.

Introduction to Geospatial Technologies, by Bradley A. Shellito, associate professor, Geography.

Published by the WH Freeman company, 469 pages. This text introduces the wide range of geospatial technologies available to and used by geographers, including Geographic Information Systems (GIS), remote sensing (satellite imagery and aerial photography), and Global Positioning Systems (GPS). The book has been adopted as a textbook at several

universities in the United States and Canada for fall 2011, and the author is teaching a new class at YSU based on it.

Art

Storytelling and Other Activities for Children in Therapy, by Johanna Slivinske, instructor, Social Work, and Lee Slivinske, professor emeritus, Social Work.

Published by John Wiley & Sons, April 2011, 346 pages. The book examines various life challenges confronting children and discusses ways that mental health practitioners and educators can use storytelling as a tool in easing emotional pain in children. It may also be used as an applied textbook in the university setting to teach narrative approaches to working with children.

ON D I S P L AY

Family Gathering, an art exhibit by Joy Christiansen Erb, assistant professor, Art, will be displayed Jan. 27 through March 9, 2012 at the Fitton Art Center in Hamilton, Ohio, as part of an exhibition titled “Without a Sound.” This will be the final stop for Christiansen-Erb’s traveling installation, which has been exhibited across the United States since 2006. Other recent exhibition venues include The Women’s Museum in Dallas, the Hartnett Gallery in Rochester, N.Y., the Baum Gallery in Conway, Ariz. and the Galveston Art Center in Galveston, Texas. A photo-based installation, Family Gathering examines the world of eating disorders through photographs, text and furniture pieces.

Living Myths, by L.J. “Tess” Tessier, professor, Philosophy and Religious Studies. Published

by Kendall Hunt Publishing Co., 2011, 153 pages. The book provides an introduction to the study of mythology – the symbols, myths, and rituals that have helped humans throughout history to understand themselves, relationships, the divine and the natural world. Loosely based on the structure of the mythic cycle itself, the text tracks the stages from creation to rebirth and return and considers the implications for contemporary culture.

Consider Ethics, Third Edition,

by Bruce N. Waller, chair, Philosophy and Religious Studies and professor, Philosophy. Published by Pearson Education Inc., November 2010, 347 pages. The book offers a balance of ethical theory and applications, a mix of text and readings from the world’s most influential philosophers, and concludes with an examination of six contemporary ethical issues presented in a pro/con format.

Critical Thinking: Consider the Verdict, Sixth Edition, by Bruce N. Waller, chair, Philosophy and Religious Studies and professor, Philosophy. Published by Pearson Education Inc., July 2011, 451 pages. Organized around examples drawn from jury trials, contemporary political and social debate, and advertising, this book shows students how to detect fallacies and how to examine and construct cogent arguments. The cover photo was taken in a Youngstown courtroom using YSU faculty, staff and students to portray the judge, attorneys and jurors.

www.ysu.edu

Down the Hill by the Stomp Pass the Water Pump Make Right, by Dragana Crnjak, assistant professor, Art, was featured this summer in an exhibition titled “Multiple Propositions: a Look at Contemporary Drawing” at the Herron School of Art and Design in Indianapolis, one of the nation’s top art schools. Crnjak, one of nine artists invited to participate, developed the 15-foot-square site-specific drawing directly on the gallery wall.

Her work investigates drawing and painting practices within a contemporary context, using charcoal as her primary medium. Crnjak was presented the Individual Excellence Award by the Ohio Arts Council in 2011 and in 2008. 19

YSU Foundation

Looking Back:

Foundation President Cites Asset Growth Reid Schmutz, president of the YSU Foundation since 1989, will retire in December, and his replacement was announced Nov. 3 following a national search. Schmutz is only the third to hold the top administrative position at the foundation since it was founded in 1966, a private non-profit that now has assets of $180 million.

In this Q&A with YSU Magazine editor Cynthia Vinarsky, Schmutz talks about ways the YSU Foundation has changed and grown over the past two decades:

Q. How did you come to the YSU Foundation?

A. I was born and raised in Youngstown, earned a bachelor’s degree in economics from Brown University and then went to work for Standard Slag. That’s where I got my experience in the business world – I like to say, I got my advanced degree in mud, dust, grease and oil. When the owner sold the company in 1989, I was vice president of operations. I found out about the job at the foundation, applied and was hired.

Q. Has the foundation’s mission changed much over the years?

A. In just two words, the mission is student support, and it really hasn’t changed. In my early years here, we funded 2,500 to 3,000 scholarships a year, and that number has nearly doubled today. Since I’ve been here we’ve been able to help more than 80,000 kids pay for college, graduate and go on to better things. Some of them come back and let us know how much their scholarships meant to them, and some have even set up scholarships themselves. That’s the best part of my job.

Q. You’ve been here 22 years. What do you see as your greatest achievement?

A. I’m most proud of how the foundation’s assets have grown, from $50 million when I started in 1989 to $180 million today. But I’m kind of like the quarterback, and sometimes the quarterback gets too much credit. That growth was only possible because we have so many generous donors, a good board, a dedicated staff and a great university to support.

C. Reid Schmutz

Q. What’s your hope for the future of the foundation?

A. I’d like to see our assets continue on an upward trend, and I’ll still be around as a member of the board. I’m also planning to work with my replacement through the month of December, and after that I’ll be available as needed.

Q. And how will you spend your retirement?

A. I love golf, so as I ride into the sunset, it’ll be in a golf cart. I don’t like winter, so my wife, Judy, and I would like to travel somewhere warm, but two of our three kids and our two grandchildren live in town, so we have no plans to move out of the area.

Editor’s Note: Shortly before press time, Paul McFadden, chief development officer in YSU’s Office of University Development, was named to replace Reid Schmutz as the next president of the YSU Foundation. Read more in the winter edition of YSU Magazine.

Accounting Professor Offers Scholarship

Q. Have there been challenges?

A. It’s been a tough economic environment, but I think we came back from the ’09 crisis faster than some university foundations because of the way we managed our funds, spending income only. We didn’t go down as far, and we came back faster. Our challenge has been to make the foundation grow, through donations and investment income, so that it can do more. We have more than 400 separate endowments, and I’m always trying to encourage people to give back, to remember us in their estate plans.

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David E. Stout

David E. Stout, an endowed accounting professor in the Williamson College of Business Administration, has established a scholarship to be awarded annually to a full-time undergraduate majoring in accounting at YSU. “It just seems that, in these challenging economic times, establishing a scholarship was the right thing to do,” said Stout, “and we hope it will encourage the development of other scholarships.”

University Development

Scholarship Honors Alumnus Who Penned First Book at 91

YSU alumnus Michael C. Conglose Sr. was 89 when value education and to pursue college degrees. “He had a he took on a project he’d been contemplating for years. He profound effect on my life,” Conglose wrote. He left the mill wrote a book. after earning his degree in 1954, joined a life and property Think and Do: Talks with Mike is his memoir, published insurance office in New Castle and later ran his own insurance this spring and written in partbusiness there, the Michael C. nership with daughter Michele Conglose Agency. “My goal Conglose Gatto, also a YSU was always to go to college. alum. The book was an 18-month The steel mill was a vehicle to project for Conglose, ’54 BS in help me get there,” he said. economics, and Gatto, ’74 MSEd At one point in the writing in counseling. process, Gatto traveled to Ellis To celebrate her father’s Island to find out more about completion of the task at the age her grandparents who emigrated of 91 and his lifelong love for from Italy in the early 1900s. learning, Gatto also established a Excited about her research, she YSU scholarship endowment in suggested they expand the book his name in conjunction with the further, but Conglose vetoed book’s publication. the idea.

The father-daughter team “He wrote the book so that began working on the book about he could pass along his memotwo years ago, shortly after Conries and the lessons he’s learned glose moved into a health care over nine decades of living to facility in New Wilmington, Pa. his grandchildren and greatGatto would visit him frequently grandchildren, and he wanted to from her home in Vermont, and be around to see it finished,” she she liked to hear his stories about said with a smile. “If I want to growing up in New Castle, Pa., continue, he says he’ll be glad during the Great Depression, servto act as my consultant.” ing in the Air Force during World Think and Do: Talks with Michael Conglose and daughter, Michele Conglose Gatto.

War II and balancing a full-time Mike was printed by a publisher job in a steel mill while he was a in New England and copies student at what was then Youngstown University. were made available to the author’s family and friends.

Gatto brought her father books to pass the time – autoThe scholarship endowment that Gatto created to honor biographies and biographies were his favorites – and before her father, titled The Michael C. Conglose Sr. Scholarship, is long, Conglose had decided to write his own life story. His for full- or part-time students majoring in economics or busidaughter offered to be his scribe, and after that their visits ness, with preference to students of Italian descent. Applicants were dedicated to crafting the 16-chapter memoir. must have at least a 3.0 GPA, and students who live in the Conglose dedicated one chapter to an elementary school Shenango Valley in western Pennsylvania or in the Mahoning principal, James Hughes, who encouraged his students to Valley in Ohio will be given preference.

He plans to fund the scholarship using royalties from a textbook he co-authored in 2010. “We try to instill in our students a sense of community responsibility and giving back, and in our minds the scholarship provides a vivid example of that,” he said.

To be eligible for the David E. and Anne C. Stout Accounting Scholarship, an applicant must be of junior standing or higher, have a GPA of at least 3.0 and be an active member of the Student Chapter of the Institute of Management Accountants. Stout helped reactivate the chapter at YSU in 2009.

Recipients will be selected by the Williamson College scholarship committee and the first scholarship for $1,500 will be awarded this spring.

Stout came to YSU in 2003 when he was named to the John S. and Doris M. Andrews Endowed Chair in Account-

ing after a two-year national search, coming from Villanova University where he was accounting department chair. He earned a BS from LaSalle College in Philadelphia, an MBA and a doctorate in accounting, both from the University of Pittsburgh.

A prolific author, he has more than 80 published articles to his credit in addition to the textbook, Cost Management: A Strategic Emphasis, published by McGraw-Hill. He has received several prestigious teaching awards and serves currently as editor-in-chief of the Journal of Accounting Education and on the American Accounting Association Board of Directors.

To apply for the Stout Accounting Scholarship, contact the Lariccia School of Accounting and Finance, 330-9413084; to inquire about establishing a YSU scholarship, contact University Development, 330-941-3119.

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PENGUIN

sports news

Penguins Face Michigan State in Season Opener Jordan Thompson, a YSU sophomore tailback from Cincinnati, runs with the ball under the lights during the Penguins’ season opener against Michigan State University in East Lansing, Mich. The Sept. 2 contest was the Penguins’ first Friday game since Nov. 25, 1994, when the team played host to Alcorn State in the first round of the playoffs at Stambaugh Stadium; it was only the 10th night game in the 88-year history of Michigan’s Spartan Stadium. The game was nationally televised live on the Big Ten Network.

New Officers Lead Penguin Club Three alumni have assumed leadership positions with the YSU Penguin Club, a major financial support group for YSU Athletics. Guenther Hladiuk, ’75 BSBA, a senior account executive at MetLife Financial Services in Boardman, is the new club president, a role held the previous two years by Walter “Buzz” Pishkur. Hladiuk is the 28th president since the organization was chartered in 1974.

Ray Briya, ’71 BSBA, is first vice president; and Scott Schulick, ’94 BSBA, ’96 MBA, is second vice president.

Penguin Club membership is open to alumni and supporters of YSU on both individual and corporate levels.

Call 330-941-3720 or 330-941-2351 for more information.

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YOUNGSTOWN STATE UNIVERSITY

Senior Defensive Tackle is Campbell Trophy Finalist

Senior defensive tackle Andrew Johnson, a sociology major from Detroit, Mich., is a candidate for the National Football Foundation Scholar Athlete Awards and a finalist for the 2011 William V. Campbell Trophy. The trophy, endowed

by HealthSouth, recognizes one individual as the absolute best scholar-athlete in the Andrew Johnson nation. Candidates must be seniors or graduate students in their final year of eligibility, have a GPA of at least 3.2, have outstanding football ability as a first team player or significant contributor and have demonstrated strong leadership and citizenship.

Penguin Sports News

Guins Share Space with 49ers YSU’s football team shared university athletic facilities with the San Francisco 49ers for five days in late September. The photos below show 49ers working out on conditioning equipment on the field at Stambaugh Stadium, and at far right, Penguins head football coach Eric Wolford observes a 49er drill.

San Francisco had back-to-back games scheduled against Cincinnati and Philadelphia, and management arranged the stay in Youngstown so the players wouldn’t have to travel back to California between contests.

The 49ers have close ties to the Youngstown area.

Youngstown native Denise DeBartolo York and her husband, John York, are co-chairmen of the team. She is a Youngstown native and a respected Mahoning Valley philanthropist. Their son Jed, the president and chief executive of the team, was born and raised in Youngstown and is a graduate of Cardinal Mooney High School.

Home Basketball Game Schedules

Basketball Broadcast Schedule Announced

The men’s basketball team will have two games nationally televised on the ESPN family of networks, another will be featured on the Big Ten Network and a fourth will be the Horizon League Network’s Game of the Week.

YSU’s first appearance on the national stage will be Nov. 23 at Penn State, a contest to be carried on BTN.com by the Big Ten Network. The game against Milwaukee on Jan. 20 is slated for a national broadcast on ESPN3.com or ESPNU, and the game against Butler on Feb. 9 will be broadcast nationally on ESPN3.

The regular-season and home finale against Detroit on Feb. 25 will be the Horizon League Network’s Game of the Week. Radio station 570 WKBN-AM in Youngstown is the radio home for every game again this year; all home games and conference road games will also be broadcast live on the Horizon League Network on the Internet.

All YSU men’s and women’s basketball home games are played at Beeghly Center; game times are subject to change. Call 330-941-1978 for ticket information. Scan the appropriate QR code for the latest information on the men’s and women’s Penguins basketball programs.

Men’s Basketball Nov. 15 Nov. 18 Dec. 6 Dec. 22 Jan. 5 Jan. 7 Jan. 20 Jan. 22 Jan. 28

Notre Dame College, 7:05 p.m.

UC-Riverside, 7:05 p.m.

Fredonia State, 7:45 p.m.

Robert Morris, 7:05 p.m.

Loyola, 7:05 p.m.

UIC, 7:05 p.m.

Milwaukee*,TBA Green Bay*, 2:05 p.m.

Cleveland State*, 7:05 p.m.

Feb. 9 Feb. 11 Feb. 23 Feb. 25

Butler*, 7:05 p.m.

Valparaiso*, 7:05 p.m.

Wright State*, 7:05 p.m.

Detroit*, 2:05 p.m.

Feb. 2 Feb. 4 Feb. 16 Feb. 18

Valparaiso*, 7:05 p.m.

Butler*, 2:05 p.m.

Milwaukee*, 7:05 p.m.

Green Bay*, 2:05 p.m.

Women’s Basketball Nov. 21 Nov. 30 Dec. 6 Dec. 31 Jan. 12 Jan. 14 Jan. 26 Jan. 28

American, 7:05 p.m.

Western Michigan, 7:05 p.m.

Bowling Green, 5:15 p.m.

Cleveland State*, 2:05 p.m.

Loyola*, 7:05 p.m.

UIC*, 2:05 p.m.

Detroit*, 7:05 p.m.

Wright State*, 4:35 p.m. (* indicates Horizon League games)

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Alumni News Alumni Volunteer for Day of Caring

Alumni volunteers who participated in this year’s United Way Day of Caring are, from left, Mollie Hartup (’02, ’04), Roxy Gurlea (’77), Shelly LaBerto (’90), Tom Ramos (’65, ’77), Carrie Ramos, Ed Brannan (’79), Lori Stewart (’04, ’10), Heather Belgin, Carol Sherman (’70), Bruce Sherman (’70), Shelly Spencer (’09), and Mary Dimitriou. Some members of the group worked on landscaping projects outside at the Easter Seals headquarters in Youngstown while the rest of the group worked with children in the classrooms.

Campus Reunion For Zeta Beta Tau

Zeta Beta Tau fraternity brothers from YSU’s Beta Upsilon chapter traveled from seven states for a reunion on campus in September. Members of the group attended a Penguin football game, toured the campus and posed on the campus core around the statue of Howard Jones, the university’s first president. Pictured are, on the left from top, Jay Lynch (’73) of Erie, Pa., Dave Weinberger (’70) of Boardman, Harvey Kart (’70) of Atlanta, Ga, and Larry Schwartz. On the right, from top, are Bob Lame (’72) of Boardman, Greg Tierno (’71) of Poland, Atty. Robert Henkin (’67) of Youngstown, and Brian Shorr.

New Alumni Group Organized in Tampa YS U AL U M N I :

Did you know that 291 YSU alumni live in Nevada, with the majority in the Reno 7 Las Vegas area? An alumni event for YSU grads living in the Las Vegas region is being Las Vegas planned for 2012!

197 Visit www.ysu.edu/ n o rs e Hend alumni for updates.

N eva d a 2 9 1

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YOUNGSTOWN STATE UNIVERSITY

YSU graduates living in the Tampa, Fla., region have organized a new alumni group – the Tampa Bay YSU Penguins – and commissioned a unique new Pete the Penguin logo for the group, created by YSU graphic designers.

Alumni in the Tampa-St. Petersburg area organized their first major gathering a year ago, a wine and food reception in October 2010, with the assistance of YSU’s Office of Alumni and Events Management. A few months later, in March, the Tampa Bay Penguins group was born.

Since then, the group has hosted a spring picnic, participated in the YSU Alumni Networking Day in July, and organized a golf outing this October.

Alumni and friends in the Tampa-St. Petersburg area are invited to attend future events and are also welcome to join in the planning. For more information, contact Bob Riddell (’81) of Lutz, Fla., at Bob.Riddell@tribridge.com or 813-431-0585, or Jeff Young (’92) of Tampa, Fla., at jyoung01@tampabay. rr.com or 813-925-8098.

Alumni News

Save ate!

D the

YSU Night at the Youngstown Symphony

Sigma Tau Gamma Alums Award Scholarships

Alumni members of Sigma Tau Gamma awarded three $1,000 scholarships to YSU students who are current members of STG when they gathered for their annual golf outing and reunion dinner this summer. Brothers attending the event were, in the front row from left: Dick Baker, Wendell Jones (’57) of Youngstown, Frank Lawrence (’63) of Austintown, Ed Bodnar (’61) of Canton, Lenny Kuzma (’62) of Fairview, Pa., John Africa (’62) of Canfield, Keith Evans (’65) of McDonald, Ray Melewski (’57) of Canfield, Wilbur Cole (’62) of Youngstown, Frank Konya (’62) of Avon, Ohio, and Russ Ricker (’65) of Boulder, Col.; second row, Del Stanley (’62) of Rochester Hills, Mich., Mike Roman (’73) of Youngstown, John Krotky (’62) of Lisbon, Bob Booher (’65) of Hartville, Ohio, Jack Sirak (’62) of Cincinnati, and Mike Ray (’01) of Youngstown.

Take Pete Al o ng ...

Pete the Penguin enjoyed adventures from coast to coast this summer after we asked YSU Magazine readers to take our fearless mascot along on their summer vacations. John and Nicole Ramson of Poland, Ohio, both 2008 graduates of YSU, took Pete on their parasailing adventure on the Outer Banks of North Carolina last summer and provided us with some great photos from the trip. The couple actually met in a communications class at YSU in 2005 and married four years later. He is employed as an operations supervisor with Con-way Freight in Lordstown, and she is a certified public accountant with Packer Thomas.

Alumni Society Memberships Make Great Gifts An Alumni Society membership makes a great gift! The Office of Alumni & Events Management is happy to coordinate the purchase of memberships to be given to alumni family or friends. Single and joint memberships are available for one year, four years or for life. A payment plan is available for those wishing to purchase a life membership. Call 330-941-3497 for more information.

Saturday, Feb. 4, 8 p.m. at the DeYor Performing Arts Center.

Get your ticket to this one-of-a-kind event featuring guest artists from the Dana School of Music and Eric Wolford, YSU head football coach, narrating Copland’s Lincoln Portrait. A portion of the ticket sales will support Dana School of Music scholarships.

Tickets are available at the Youngstown Symphony Box Office. For information, contact the Youngstown Symphony, 330-744-0264.

Youngstown Day Sunday, March 4, Sarasota, Fla. YSU’s Office of Alumni and Events Management will host the 2012 Youngstown Area Reunion in Sarasota, Fla., a popular event that draws as many as 500 YSU alumni, friends and family who have relocated from Youngstown or reside in Florida for part of the year. Invitations will be sent in January 2012.

Be sure to visit www.ysu. edu/alumni for information on other coming events, such as YSU Night with Phantoms Hockey in January, call the Alumni and Events Management, 330-941-3497 or scan the Alumni QR code below.

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Calendar Features Alumna Who Survived Colorectal Cancer

Three years ago, Staci Wills of Canfield was happily ensconced in her life as the stay-at-home mother of three children under the age of 6.

She was also working hard to complete her second degree at YSU, a master’s in School Curriculum and Assessment, when some health concerns prompted a visit to the family doctor. He suggested that the health issues might be related to the stress of grad school, and she readily accepted the idea. After all, she was only 32.

Less than six months later, Wills faced a shocking diagnosis: she had Stage III rectal cancer. In addition to extensive radiation and chemotherapy treatments, the young mother underwent surgery to remove a tumor and to create a permanent ostomy, a surgically created opening near the abdomen designed to collect waste.

Still rebuilding her strength after surviving the cancer treatments in 2009 and 2010, Wills is determined now to inform the public about the symptoms of colorectal cancer, especially the fact that the number of people under 50 who are diagnosed with colon or rectal cancer is on the rise.

And to help tell that story, the YSU alumna agreed to be featured as “Miss October” in a 2012 calendar produced

by The Colon Club, a national nonprofit organization committed to educating people about colorectal cancer in out-ofthe-box ways. The calendar, which the group calls its eighth annual “Colondar,” includes photos of 13 courageous colon cancer and rectal cancer survivors under 50, all proudly displaying their surgical scars.

Wills boldly reveals her ostomy in the Colondar photo, and she’s just as outspoken in talking about it. “I came to terms with this rather quickly. I knew I would have this ‘bag’ for the rest of my life, but having a bag meant having my life,” she said. “My scar and my bag are nothing more than reminders of how far I have come.”

Wills earned her bachelor’s degree in elementary education at YSU in 2000 and taught for several years at public schools in North Carolina and Ohio; she completed her MSEd in 2008. When her husband Chris (’05 MBA) took YSU alumna Staci Wills is Miss October in the 2012 Colondar, a calendar a job that required frequent travel, she decided to shelve that features 13 young colorectal cancer survivors. The photo was taken in Lake George, N.Y. her teaching career to stay at home with their children, now ages 9, 6 and 3.

The Colon Club and its 2012 Colondar aim to make the public aware of the early symptoms of colorectal cancer, Wills explained, along with the fact that it can strike at an early age and the importance of early detection. It also offers hope and encouragement for cancer survivors by telling the stories of 13 colorectal cancer survivor calendar models.

While the risk of colorectal cancer increases with age, the National Cancer Institute reports that the incidence of colon cancer has climbed 40 percent in patients under 50 over the past two decades, and rectal cancer numbers for that age group are up 63 percent. The American Cancer Society reports that colorectal cancer is the third leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the United States and the third most common cancer for both men and women.

To purchase a 2012 Colondar or to learn more about colorectal cancer and the Colon Club, call 816-729-7760 or visit www.colondar.com.

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YOUNGSTOWN STATE UNIVERSITY

Alumni S T potligh

CELEBRATING ACCOMPLISHED GRADUATES

Making It Big in Country Music Bob DiPiero ’78

Photo by Ed Rode

Bob DiPiero is a longtime rock’n’roller who’s making it big in the world of country music.

The YSU alum has written 15 number-one hits and nearly 175 more hit singles for legendary country superstars, including Reba McEntire, Vince Gill, Montgomery Gentry, Tim McGraw, George Strait, Faith Hill and Martina McBride. He was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2007, was named Songwriter of the Year at the Nashville Music Awards in 1998 and 2000, and this year was nominated for both an Oscar and a Golden Globe for Best Original Song in a Motion Picture.

The song in question, “Coming Home” from the movie “Country Strong,” was performed by Gwyneth Paltrow during the 2010 Academy Awards.

All this and more from the Dana School of Music graduate who first started writing songs in the practice rooms of Bliss Hall.

“While I was going to YSU, I was working really hard at classical guitar, but I was terrible – just horrifying,” DiPiero remembers. “So after two hours of straight torture, I’d go write songs in the little practice rooms in Bliss just to get a break from all that hard work.”

Classical guitar may not have been his calling at the time, but rock’n’roll unquestionably was.

“I was the kid who saw the Beatles on Ed Sullivan and experienced a musical religious awakening,” said DiPiero, who lived, breathed and studied rock and jazz as a high school and college student and played in a succession of bands. “I was certain my life would be in music, for better or worse.”

It wasn’t until 1978, the year he graduated from YSU with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree, that DiPiero set off for Music Row. “A scuba diver lives near the water; a songwriter lives

where people need songs. That was Nashville to me,” he said.

He spent his first two Nashville years working as a guitar teacher, trying to teach his students “Back in Black” and “Stairway to Heaven,” but most of them preferred country music, so he began learning the genre. In 1983, a few crucial connections and apprenticeships later, DiPiero had his first number-one country hit: the Oak Ridge Boys’ “American Made.”

Before long, DiPiero had 14 more chart toppers to his credit, and he earned a place in the American Idol Songbook with the Montgomery Gentry hit “Gone” – the Youngstown native had come a long way from his days of recording at Peppermint Productions and playing the Tomorrow Club in downtown Youngstown.

DiPiero attributes his success to keeping an open mind.

“The reason I think I have an ongoing career in music is because I keep the mind of a student; no learning is ever complete,” he explained. “On any given day, I just try to write the song that’s already in the room.”

When he’s not writing, DiPiero is a leader among top Nashville music organizations and a performer, playing in legendary clubs such as the Bluebird Café. Occasionally, he takes time to relax with his wife, Leslie, at their Seaside, Fla., residence, but downtime moments are few and far between. For 28 years, he has continued to define today’s southern songbook, with an estimated 1,000+ songs to his credit.

But don’t be surprised if a Beatles-inspired riff appears in his country tunes every now and then. “I like to think that I brought some of my Youngstown rock’n’roll grooves with me to Nashville,” admits DiPiero. His fans don’t mind because, just like his number-one hit for Restless Heart, “that rock won’t roll” without a touch of DiPiero country magic.

Profile by Andrea Armeni

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Alumni Spotlight

Career Change – from the NFL to Health Care Pamela Browner White ’87 Last year at this time, Pamela Browner White had the kind of job people like to brag about. She was senior vice president of public affairs and government relations for the Philadelphia Eagles, the first African-American to be named a VP in the National Football League.

But the YSU alumna resigned from the Eagles job in April to search for a new opportunity. By July, she had signed on as vice president of public affairs for Cancer Treatment Centers of America, a world far-removed from professional sports.

It’s her first venture into health care, but Browner White has never been afraid to try something new. “Some people laughed when I left banking to join the Philadelphia Eagles.

‘Pamela in the sports industry?’ they said. But it was an incredible opportunity to work with some of the country’s elite athletes,” she commented. “I had a great time, a lot of fun.”

Browner White was already familiar with Cancer Treatment Centers of America, having served on the board of directors for its Eastern Regional Medical Center in Philadelphia for the past five years. CTCA has regional hospitals in Chicago, Philadelphia, Phoenix and Tulsa, and a fifth is set to open in Atlanta next year.

Back Pain Relief Led to Chiropractic Career Joseph Ethen ’97 The pain was so bad, Joseph Ethen could only get up to eat, go to the bathroom and endure grueling physical therapy.

“Otherwise, for a whole month, I was on my back,” he remembers.

At the age of 24, Ethen suffered from a severely bulging disk in his back. To fix it, his doctor recommended surgery.

Instead, he did something he never thought he would do – he went to a chiropractor.

“I really didn’t believe in it, but I didn’t want to have surgery,” said Ethen, who earned a bachelor’s degree in exercise science from YSU in 1997.

Within a month, his back was functioning. Within six months, he was pain free.

“It changed my view of chiropractic and how powerful it can be,” he said.

And it changed his life.

Ethen, who was working as an exercise physiologist and athletic trainer at Sharon Regional Health System in Pennsylvania at the time, said he “almost immediately” changed career paths.

He enrolled in the Palmer Chiropractic College in Davenport, Iowa, earning a doctorate in chiropractic in 2005, 28

YOUNGSTOWN STATE UNIVERSITY

and returned to the Youngstown area to set up his own practice. In July, Ethen, his wife, Alicia, and two daughters and a son moved to suburban Chicago, where his practice now includes five massage therapists, the latest equipment in the chiropractic field and patients ranging in age from newborns to senior citizens.

“I am one of the millions of people across the world whose life has been turned around by going to a chiropractor,” Ethen said from his office in Glencoe, Ill. “I believe that we do the same thing every day right here.”

A native of St. Cloud, Minn., who played basketball, track and football in high school, Ethen attended Carl Sandburg College in Illinois for two years before being recruited to play basketball at YSU in 1995. At 6-feet-7-inches tall, Ethen played power forward for the Penguins under coach Dan Peters. He was an Academic All Mid-Continent Conference selection for the 1996-97 season.

After earning his degree in 1997, he took the job at SRHS and in 2001 earned a master’s degree in exercise physiology from Slippery Rock University. When he opened Ethen Chiro-

Alumni Spotlight

“I wanted to get back into a line of business that was more directly related to helping people,” she explained.

“Cancer has impacted my family deeply. We lost my mother to breast cancer when she was only 30. If Cancer Treatment Centers had been available, I am sure the outcome would have been different.”

As a board member, Browner White said, she was always moved by the centers’ commitment to excellence. “At a certain level, we all put so much time in at the office. I feel incredibly blessed that the work I do with CTCA is so closely aligned to my own personal aspirations.”

A Philadelphia native, Browner White came to YSU in the mid-1980s as a non-traditional transfer student, married, with one child and another on the way. “Coming to YSU was not my first beginning, but it was my best beginning,” she told a student group when she visited the campus recently.

“Here, I had professors who cared about me and my future.”

She graduated in 1987 with a bachelor’s degree in communications and a minor in marketing and landed her first job as a newswoman for WYTV-Channel 33 in Youngstown.

She had been reporting on a landfill controversy involving Browning Ferris Industries, but the company offered to create a corporate communications job just for her, and she took it.

“At first I wanted to be the next Diane Sawyer,” she recalls, “but my dream changed.”

From there she worked in the newspaper and banking industries and had risen to a top position as a communications strategist for Citizen’s Bank before joining the Eagles. She has been recognized as one of the Top 50 Women in Business in Pennsylvania, and this summer she was presented the President’s Award by the Beverly Hills/Hollywood NAACP for her efforts to promote diversity and the advancement of minorities.

As chair of The Marian Anderson Award, which honors celebrities for their humanitarian work, Browner White has met famous recipients such as Bill Cosby, Maya Angelou, Richard Gere, Sidney Poitier, Oprah Winfrey, Quincy Jones and Elizabeth Taylor. “Sometimes I think I’m the luckiest person I know,” she said.

She moved from Philadelphia to a suburb of Chicago when she accepted her new job, a relocation made easier because her husband, Jeremiah White Jr., is a business consultant. They created a blended family with eight adult children – and eight grandchildren – when they married just over two years ago.

Profile by Cynthia Vinarsky

practic and Wellness Inc. in Canfield in 2006, he also volunteered as the unofficial team chiropractor for YSU athletes.

“I’m very wellness oriented,” said Ethen, who exercises three to four times a week, eats a healthy diet and gets chiropractic adjustments on a regular basis. “Unlike physical therapists, who most often work with people who are injured or not healthy, my mantra as a chiropractor is to work with healthy people and help them stay healthy, as well as with sick and injured patients.”

He considers regular chiropractic appointments a part of maintaining good health.

Ethen, whose practice also includes acupuncture, acknowledged that some people are still skeptical about chiropractic, and fewer than 10 percent of Americans visit chiropractors regularly.

He believes, however, that chiropractic care is becoming more accepted, and he noted that a growing number of medical doctors are recognizing the role that chiropractic can play in a patient's health. On his website, Ethen cites a recent study that indicates more hospitals are offering their patients the option of alternative therapies, such as chiropractic care.

Ethen said he moved to the Chicago area for two reasons.

First, it is about halfway between Struthers – his wife’s hometown – and St. Cloud, Minn., where his parents still live.

“Also, we came here a lot on vacation,” he said. “We love it so much that we thought, ‘Why not make it home?’ So, we did.”

Profile by Ron Cole

Joseph Ethen in his playing days for the Penguins.

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class

60s

Kathryn Spillman of Leetonia, ’62 BS in education, was named to the Distinguished Alumni Hall of Fame by the Crestview Schools Alumni Association. Spillman, who also earned a master’s degree in reading education from Westminster College, was founder of the Crestview Elementary Library and served as a librarian for 15 years. During her career she conducted workshops, had articles published in educational journals and received several awards, including the International Reading Association Celebrate Library Award. She retired in 1986 from New Waterford Elementary School.

Sister Darla Vogelsang of Youngstown, ’64 BS in education, celebrated her golden jubilee of service with the Ursuline Sisters of Youngstown at a special service and reception in August.

She now serves as a Sister Darla Volgelsang Catholic Chaplain for Humility of Mary Health Partners at its St. Elizabeth, Boardman and St. Joseph Health Center campuses. Before becoming a chaplain, she served as a principal and teacher at schools in the Youngstown Catholic Diocese for 22 years. She has a master’s degree in reading from the University of St. Francis in Fort Wayne, Ind., and a master’s degree in pastoral studies from Loyola University in Chicago.

Paul Sandstrom of Akron, ’66 BS in chemistry, has been promoted at Goodyear Tire & Rubber to research and development fellow, the company’s top technical position. Sandstrom, who also earned a master’s degree in polymer science from the University of Akron, has 44 years of service at Goodyear. He has been granted 271 United States patents related to polymers, rubber chemicals and rubber compounds.

70s Art L. Spisak of Iowa City, Iowa, ’79 AB in classical studies, has been named director of the University of Iowa Honors Program and professor in the Department of Classics, Art Spisak College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. Formerly associate provost for faculty and student academic affairs and director of the Honors College at Missouri State University, Spisak earned a master’s degree from John Carroll University and a Ph.D. from Loyola University in Chicago.

80s Betty Beight of Leetonia, ’80 BSBA, was inducted into the Crestview Schools Alumni 30

YOUNGSTOWN STATE UNIVERSITY

notes

Association Distinguished Alumni Hall of Fame. Beight was treasurer for the Crestview Schools for 31 years, from 1969 through 2000. Since retirement she has served as treasurer of American Society of Women Accountants, chaired committees for the East Fairfield Church and participated in bird watching for the Cornell University Lab of Ornithology.

James F. Foster of Grafton, Ohio, ‘81 BSAS in criminal justice, has been promoted to Chief of Police in the City of Brook Park.

Formerly the lieutenant supervisor of the detective bureau, Foster also served as lieutenant of patrol and sergeant supervisor of the detective bureau and patrol.

He has completed James Foster Police Executive and Administration Leadership School and in 2010 received the Knights of Columbus Council 7970 Blue Coat of the Year Award.

His wife, Barbara (Van Maldeghem) Foster, also a YSU alum, earned her BSBA in accounting in 1982.

Marian Kutlesa of Struthers, ’83 AB in anthropology/archeology, was presented the Mahoning Valley Historical Society Directors Award Marian Kutlesa of Achievement recognizing her historic preservation efforts. She founded the Struthers Historical Society and led a community effort to restore the historic Alma Frankfort House as a permanent home for the society’s collection. She volunteered for more than 30 years as an archeology dig crew member for the late YSU Archeology Professor John Robert White and has been a National Parks volunteer for the past nine years.

Greg Tisone of Cleveland, ’84 BE in chemical engineering, was recently named president of CardPak, a developer and manufacturer of environmentally sustainable packaging based in Solon. Tisone, who also holds an MBA from Case Western Reserve University, had been the company’s vice president and general manager. He was appointed to the company’s top administrative position by its board of directors.

Laura Cha-yu Liu of Chicago, ’87 BS in combined sciences, was appointed by the Illinois Supreme Court to serve as a Cook County Circuit Court Judge. She is the first ChineseAmerican to serve on the Cook County bench and the first Chinese-American female judge in Illinois. Liu, who earned her law degree at the University of Cincinnati Law School, was a partner in the firm of Hogan Maren, Ltd. at the time of her appointment. She joined

the firm in 1998 and focused her practice on civil litigation and health care law.

Joni Moore of Salado, Texas, ’88 BA in psychology and social work, finished second this summer in the women’s division of Ultraman Canada and fourth overall. The annual, three-day event includes a 6.2 mile swim, bike rides of 90.3 miles and 171.4 miles, and a 52.4 mile run. Moore, a former Army lieutenant now employed as a test evaluation coordinator at Fort Hood, established a new record for the women’s 40-45 age division.

Sharon Stellmar Ragan of Struthers,’83 AAS, ’88 BSEd in elementary education, ’03 MEd in elementary curriculum, was honored in October as the Youngstown Sharon Stellmar Ragan City School District’s Teacher of the Year. She joined the school district in 2000 and this fall was named the grade 6-8 STEM science teacher at Chaney Academy in Youngstown. Previously, she taught at P. Ross Berry Middle School, where she partnered with the Ohio Department of Soil and Conservation and YSU on a project. Her three siblings, Michele Stellmar Noe, Jim Stellmar and Kevin Stellmar, all earned engineering degrees at YSU.

90s Peter M. Basciano of Evans, Ga., ’91 BSBA, an associate professor of finance in the Hull College of Business at Augusta State University, was recently Peter Basciano appointed acting Associate Vice President of Academic Affairs (Associate Provost) at ASU. Basciano came to the university in the fall of 1999 as an assistant professor of Finance, and he formerly served as Education Certification Program Director and MBA Program Director. He earned his master’s and doctoral degrees at Kent State University.

Treena Johnson of Northfield Center, Ohio, ‘93 BS in accounting, ‘99 MBA in management, was recently promoted to manager, General Accounting and Analysis, for RPM International Inc. of Medina. Johnson joined RPM in 2008 as a senior financial analyst. RPM is a holding company with subsidaries in the specialty coating, sealant and building materials businesses.

Dr. Amit N. Patel of Salt Lake City, Utah, ’93 BS, ’94 MS in immunophysiology, was named to the scientific advisory board for Stem Cell Assurance Inc., Jupiter, Fla. Patel is an associate professor in the division of cardiothoracic surgery at the University of Utah School of Medicine and director of clinical

Class Notes

regenerative medicine and tissue engineering at the university. His research includes studies using patients’ own autologous adult stem cells. Patel earned his medical degree from Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine.

Melanie E. Martin of South Bend, Ind., ’96 BS in industrial and systems engineering, has been appointed manager of The Timken Company plant in South Bend.

Previously, she was manager of operations and customer service for Bosch Rexroth in Buchanan, Mich. Martin is also training a dog for therapy work with children and seniors.

Sherri Theaker of Bethany, W.V., ’96 MEd in special education, has joined the faculty of Bethany College as an assistant professor of education. She also earned her BS degree in human ecology from Ohio State University and a doctorate in curriculum and instruction and special education from Ohio University.

Theaker has more than 10 years of teaching experience at OU and served as a consultant to the Ohio Department of Education’s Office of Early Learning and School Readiness.

Andre Smith of Sylvania, Ohio, ’97 BS in education, was recently named assistant athletic director at Lourdes University in northwest Ohio, where he became the school’s first men’s basketball coach in 2009. Previously, Smith was assistant men’s basketball coach at Thiel College, and before that he was head coach and general manager Andre Smith for the Mahoning Valley Wildcats in the International Basketball League. He played basketball for YSU in the mid ‘90s and played professional basketball in the U.S. and in Europe.

Leroy King of Sylvania, Ohio, ’98 BA in social work, is an intervention specialist at Toledo-based Harbor Healthcare and serves as men’s assistant basketball coach for Lourdes University. Previously, King was assistant coach for Central Catholic High School in Toledo for two seasons, helping to lead the team in 2010 to capture its first City League championship in 42 years and to finish the season as sectional champion and district runner-up. He played basketball for YSU in the mid ‘90s.

Jason G. Wodogaza of Atlanta, ’98 BA in political

science, has joined the law firm of Burr & Forman as an associate in the Atlanta office, working in the firm’s banking and financial services groups.

His experience includes representation of bank holding companies, other financial institutions and corporate borrowers in various finance transactions. Wodogaza earned his law degree in 2002 at the Emory University School of Law.

William R. Young of Austintown, ’99 BS, ’04 MS, both in education, earned a doctorate of education in teacher leadership from Walden University in Minneapolis, Minn. He is an art teacher at Lincoln K-8 School in Warren and has been employed as a teacher and mentor for the Warren City Schools for 12 years. His doctoral dissertation was titled “The Effects of Arats Integration Professional Development on Teaching.”

Jason Wodogaza

Jamie Marich of Howland, Ohio, ‘00 BA, authored a new

book, titled “EMDR Made Simple: 4 Approaches to Using EMDR with Every Client,” published in August by Premier Education & Media. Marich is a clinical counselor at PsyCare Inc. in Liberty, a contributing faculty member for several online universities and a provider of continuing education for helping professionals. She is a recognized expert on the use of Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing, or EMDR, a clinical treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder. Marich has a Ph.D. in counseling studies from Capella University and a master’s degree in counseling from the Franciscan University of Steubenville. The book is available on her website, www. drjamiemarich.com.

“Bachelors and Bunnies: The Sexual Politics of Playboy” is the title of a new book authored by alumna Carrie Pitzulo and published in May

by The University of Chicago Press.

Pitzulo, ’97 AB in history, is an assistant professor of history at the University of West Georgia and lives in Atlanta. She earned a master’s degree in American history from Ohio University and a Ph.D., also in American history, from the Graduate Center of the City University of New York.

Pitzulo joined the University of West Georgia faculty in fall 2010 and teaches upper division and graduate courses on American women, gender, and sexuality. In her book, available on Amazon.com, Pitzulo delves into the history of Playboy magazine to reveal what she says is a surprising record of support for women’s rights and an unlikely ally for the feminist cause.

William Young

00s Gerald A. Nunziato, Jr. of Fort Campbell, Ky., ’00 BE in civil engineering, an Army Major with the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), has returned home from his second tour of duty in Afghanistan. Nunziato previously served two tours in Iraq. He participated in the ROTC program at YSU and received his commission as a second lieutenant upon graduation. He has received numerous commendations, including the Bronze Star with 3 Oak Leaf clusters and the Combat Action Badge.

Jason Markey of Poland, ’01 BS in physical therapy, ‘11 MHHS in health care administration and health promotion, has been named manager of rehabilitation for HM Home Care. Previously, he was a staff physical therapist at St. Elizabeth Boardman Health Center. Both businesses are operated

by Humility of Mary Health Partners.

Alumni Authors

In his book titled “My Dad’s Lungs from Smoking,” YSU alumnus Mike Hall of St. Joseph, Mich., ’70 BSBA, describes the threestep method he used to successfully quit smoking 17 years ago. Hall is retired after working 39 years for the Whirlpool Corp. His book, published by AuthorHouse, is available at Amazon.com.

Jason Markey

FALL 2011

31

Class Notes

Andy Mays of Wallingford, Conn., ’01 BE in materials science and engineering, was promoted to product manager for Ulbrich Stainless Steel and Special Metals Ultra Foil Products. He is responsible for a range of duties in the company’s worldwide sales and product support, including development of new products in strategic markets and applications. Mays joined the company in 2004 as a process metallurgist.

Melanie Vonovick of La Jolla, Calif., ’02, has been named accounting manager at Approved Transportation, a worldwide shipping company and division of Dewitt Companies.

In her new position she will oversee a staff of six in the company’s corporate headquarters in San Diego. Previously, she was a senior accountant at Borrego Springs Bank in California.

Jeffrey D. Martin of Hartford, Conn., ’03 BE in chemical engineering, accepted a position as a senior scientist at Johnson & Johnson Consumer & Personal Products Worldwide in Skillman, N.J. Previously, Jeffrey earned a Ph.D. in chemical engineering from the University of Pittsburgh in 2007, worked as a postdoctoral researcher at the National Institute of Standards and Technology in Gaithersburg, Md., and at Unilever in Trumbull, Conn.

Jennifer M. Simon of Youngstown, ’03 BSA and ‘06 MS, both in criminal justice; Stacey M. Zipay of Hubbard, ’03 AB in psychology; Chad M. Makar of Youngstown, ’04 BSB in marketing management; Jason M. Rebraca of Youngstown, ’05 BSA in criminal justice; and Matthew E. Williams of Niles, ’08 BSB in accounting, recently earned their juris doctorate degrees from the University of Akron School of Law.

Jaclyn Trolio of Columbus, ’03 BSBA in marketing management, was recently presented the 2011 Pace Setter Award by Ohio State University’s Fisher College of Business, where she is pursuing an MBA with a focus on marketJaclyn Trolio ing and strategy. The award is determined by faculty, staff and student peers and recognizes business students who demonstrate academic performance and leadership ability. Trolio is employed as assistant marketing director for the Dynatronics Corp.

Roy Brosi of Shippingport, Pa., ’05 MBA, has been named director of strategic industry initiatives for FirstEnergy Nuclear Operating Company, a subsidiary of FirstEnergy Corp.

In the newly created position, Brosi will coordinate FENOC’s participation in nuclear industry initiatives resulting from the recent events at the Fukushima reactors in Japan.

He has more than 30 years experience in the nuclear power industry, most recently as director of performance improvement at FENOC’s Beaver Valley Nuclear Power Station in Shippingport, Pa. He earned a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering at the University of Pittsburgh before doing his graduate work at YSU. Lindsay Wardle of North Canton, ’05 BS in biology, received her doctor of osteopathic medicine degree from Ohio University College of Osteopathic Medicine in June.

This summer, she began a residency in obstetrics and gynecology at Grandview Hospital in Dayton.

Gary DiLisio of Cornersburg, Ohio, ’07 BS in education, ’10 MEd in counseling, is an academic advisor at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, where he is primary advisor in the college of Humanities and Social Sciences to freshmen and sophomores who have not declared their majors. As a student, he did an internship as an academic advisor in the Beeghly College of Education, and he worked for two years as a grad assistant in YSU’s Center Gary DiLisio for Student Progress.

Alisha Koby of Stow, Ohio, ’07 BSAS in hotel and lodging management, joined Hampton Inn & Suites Cleveland/Beachwood as general manager of its hotel in Beachwood, Ohio. Previously, she was employed for four years at the Streetsboro Hampton, including two years as general manager, and she also worked as a guest services representative in two of the company’s Youngstown-area hotels.

Raquel B. Pacheco of Canfield, ’07 BSBA in finance, is a chartered retirement planning counselor for Merrill Lynch.

Based in the company’s Canfield office where she is part of The Thompson Pacheco Group, she Raquel Pacheco recently earned the Certified Financial Planner certification awarded by the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards. She joined Merrill Lynch in 2007 with nine years of industry experience.

America’s Auto Recovery Czar Former Youngstown Mayor Jay Williams, ’94 BSBA in finance, has relocated to Washington, D.C. to head the Office of Recovery for Auto Communities and Workers for the U.S. Department of Labor.

He was appointed this summer to the new post, better known as the nation’s Auto Recovery Czar, by the Secretary of Labor.

Williams was Youngstown’s first African-American mayor and the youngest mayor in the city’s history. He was elected mayor in 2005, and before that served as Youngstown’s community development director.

Book Features Marble Maker’s Work Carl Fisher of Temecula, Calif., ’75 BE in civil engineering, is among the marble makers showcased in Marble Mania, a 238-page book on the history of marble making published this summer by Schiffer Books. Fisher, who was featured on the cover of the summer 2008 edition of YSU Magazine, creates handmade marbles out of polymer clay and sells them to marble collectors worldwide. His marbles are on display at Art and Crystal, a shop in Caesar’s Palace, Las Vegas. Fisher is also employed as an information technology specialist for IBM Corp.

Nicole Haefke

Nicole Haefke of Canfield, Ohio, ’08 BS in marketing and advertising, is the new marketing coordinator for Reach Magazine in Canfield. Haefke also serves as a member of the board of trustees and as secretary for First Night Canfield and assists with its marketing efforts.

Kathy DeVito of Austintown, ’09 BS in nursing, has been named nurse manager of the acute rehabilitation unit at St. Elizabeth Health Center, Youngstown. Previously, she was utilization manager for HM Home Care. Both businesses are operated by Humility of Mary Health Partners.

Kathy DeVito

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When you write, please provide your YSU graduation year and degree, city of residence, phone number and email address. We’d like to use your photograph, too, if you’ll email it as a high-resolution jpeg. Email class notes to: universitymagazine@ysu.edu or mail to: YSU Marketing and Communications, Youngstown State University, One University Plaza, Youngstown, OH 44555.

Did you know there are 2,000 trees on the YSU campus?

Our six-foot benches are made in the USA of recycled materials and feature an inlaid plaque on the backrest.

Our donor trees feature a handsome, permanent plaque placed adjacent to the tree. Prominent sites are available.

The YSU Campus Beautification Initiative is offering commemorative benches and trees to support an endowment to help sustain the natural beauty of our campus environment. Now you can honor a family member, friend or employee – and help preserve campus trees and green spaces for future generations. Consider becoming a YSU tree or bench donor. For details, contact Catherine Cala, Development Director, at 330-941-2752 or cacala@ysu.edu, or visit www.ysu.edu/treesbenches.

S TAT E

UNIVERSITY

Office of University Development One University Plaza Youngstown, Ohio 44555-0001

Homecoming, 1946

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Youngstown College Homecoming Queen Wanda Porembski, a sophomore sponsored by Phi Lambda Delta sorority, crosses the football field atop an open convertible in this Nov. 3, 1946 photo. This year’s Homecoming was celebrated with a full calendar of activities on the YSU campus Oct. 23-29. The Penguins won their Homecoming game against Western Illinois University by a score of 56-14.

Jeremy McGhee, an English major from Cleveland, and Emilie Hall, a Biology and Psychology major from East Liverpool, were named the 2011 Homecoming King and Queen.

you.

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