Spring 2002 -- Vol. 19, No. 1

Alumni & Philanthropy News

Alumni and Friends,

Greetings from the Eberly College of Science Office of Alumni Relations and Development.

Fall is here, and with its arrival come the beautiful cool, crisp temperatures and blue skies of an autumn in central Pennsylvania. Faculty are hard at work in classrooms and laboratories, and students are deeply engrossed in their coursework. And of course, there is the weekend excitement of Penn State football.

Many of our alumni return to Penn State periodically to enjoy all that fall has to offer on campus. We are always happy to have you come back to campus, and we hope that you are as excited about some of the changes underway here as we are. Take a walk around campus and you’ll see many new sights—construction abounds, and buildings seem to spring up overnight. The newly-expanded football stadium is truly a marvel, complete with its Nittany Lion weathervane.

The Eberly College of Science has its share of construction projects underway as well. Ground has been broken for the new life sciences and chemistry buildings on Shortlidge Road, and formal groundbreaking ceremonies were held in October for both buildings. These buildings will provide critical space for faculty and students. Since the buildings will be connected to each other by an enclosed bridge/walkway and will be physically linked to several other existing science buildings, our faculty and students will be provided with new opportunities for collaboration in many disciplines.

Science education also continues to change as instructors search for more effective ways to bring learning into the classroom. Teaching with the aid of technology is becoming more commonplace, and both students and faculty enjoy a more interactive means of learning.

Perhaps you can find time to schedule a trip back to campus. We would be pleased to have you stop by and visit with us. We can show you the sights, both in and out of the Eberly College of Science, and we can help you reconnect with the Penn State you remember as a student. We would also like the opportunity to talk to you about ways in which you can become more connected with the present-day college.

We hope to hear from you.

Best wishes,

Joanne T. Cahill
Director of Development and Alumni Relations
jtc7@psu.edu

Suzanne Sinclair Grieb
Assistant Director of Alumni Relations
sds6@psu.edu

 

A Grand Destiny: Campaign Update The Eberly College of Science has reached 91.9% of its goal for A Grand Destiny: The Penn State Campaign as of November 30, 2001. This figure represents the raising of $68,909,631 to keep Penn State’s science programs at the forefront of teaching, research, and public service. In May 2001 the university responded to the need for more resources to support students, faculty, and programs by raising the $1 billion university goal to $1.3 billion. The Eberly College of Science has a new goal of $75 million. This increase represents our critical need for two new building projects that are included in the new science complex. $13 million of the increased goal will go to support the cost of the complex, as listed under the ongoing support category. The remaining $2 million of the increase will go under the featured objectives category, specifically for graduate student support. A breakdown of the campaign progress through November 30, 2001 follows: College Campaign Progress Overall Goal Progress % of Goal $75,000,000 $68,909,631 91.9 Featured Objectives Undergraduate Students $10,000,000 $7,814,889 78.1 Graduate Students $8,000,000 $10,099,973 126.2 Faculty $18,000,000 $19,970,333 110.9 Programs $6,000,000 $9,008,450 150.1 Ongoing Support $33,000,000 $22,015,984 66.7

Members Celebrate Inauguration of Millennium Society

Members of the first-ever recognition society in the Eberly College of Science were on hand September 21, 2001, to celebrate the inauguration of its new Millennium Society. Invitations were issued to 109 donors qualifying for membership. The Millennium Society recognizes those who have donated $1000 or more of their financial resources to the college and acknowledges the role of private support in advancing the college and its contributions to science and technology through education and research.

Dan Larson, Dean, welcomed everyone to the dinner which was held at the Nittany Lion Inn and introduced Barbara J. Scheffler as the 2001 chair of the Millennium Society.

Barbara "Bobbi" Scheffler holds two degrees from Peen State, a bachelor of science degree she earned in 1972 in mathematics, and a master’s in 1973 in statistics. Bobbi is from Villanova, Pennsylvania, and is president of the Scheffler Group, Inc., a consulting firm. With years of experience behind her in the clinical drug development and regulatory process, Bobbi works with a number of pharmaceutical companies to develop plans to move drugs through the testing and approval processes. She retired in 1999 as senior vice president for U.S. Bioscience, Inc. a pharmaceutical company dedicated to the development and commercialization of drugs for cancer and allied diseases. During her time at U.S. Bioscience, she held several management positions including vice president for clinical operations, senior vice president for clinical operations and regulatory affairs, senior vice president for project management, and senior vice president for corporate and scientific affairs. She is a member of the Eberly College of Science Campaign Committee and serves on the Science B.S./M.B.A. advisory panel. Bobbi and her husband, Stuart, who also holds two Penn State degrees—a bachelor’s and masters of public administration, have been extremely loyal donors to the college for many years.

For more information about the Millennium Society, please contact the Eberly College of Science Office of Alumni Relations and Development at 1-800-297-1429 or email: millennium@psu.edu

Erica Belser Joins Alumni/Development

There is a new face in the Eberly College of Science's Development and Alumni Relations office. Erica Belser joined the team on September 4, 2001 as the development assistant. Erica will support the assistant and associate directors of development and the assistant director of alumni relations. Her position entails coordinating written communications with donors, assisting in event planning, and preparing endowment information.

Prior to this position, Erica supported the director of the eBusiness Research Center, a joint effort of the Smeal College of Business Administration and the School of Information Sciences and Technology. She graduated from Penn State’s College of Arts and Architecture with a bachelor’s degree in art education, and is currently enrolled as a nondegree graduate student.

Endowment Levels to Go Up July 2002

Endowments provide dependable funds for their designated programs year after year. They are a powerful way to support student scholarships and fellowships, as well as endowed chairs, professorships, and faculty fellowships that support the work of our faculty. Endowments attract prominent, talented students and faculty members to the university by creating opportunities for consistent funding. Benefactors get the satisfaction of knowing Penn State will benefit and grow from their generosity, specifically in the area they chose to support based on their personal aspirations.

The level of investment required to start an endowment will rise as of July 1, 2002. The Board of Trustees’ Named Endowment Task Force evaluated the current levels relative to real costs and Penn State’s competitive position relative to other institutions. The current range of investments is $15 thousand to $3 million, beginning with a University-wide student award and ending at the top with a Dean’s Chair. Come July 2002, the range will be $20 thousand to $5 million. These new minimums will not apply to existing endowments.

Fall 2001 Alumni Society Business Wrap-Up

Terence Dwyer

Louise Goeser

Daniel Nolan

The fall meeting of the Board of Directors of the Eberly College of Science Alumni Society was held on Saturday, October 13. The board welcomed three new directors to its membership. Elected to three-year terms which run from 2001 until 2004 were David C. Han, ’89 B.S. Biol, ’92 M.D., a vascular surgeon at Geisinger Medical Center in Danville, Pennsylvania; Heather L. Rayle, ’89 B.S. Chem, market manager for Rodel, Inc., Fountain Hills, Arizona; and Roger O. Uhler, ’55 B.S. Chem, retired manager of intellectual property and contracts at DuPont Company in Wilmington, Delaware. Re-elected to serve an additional three-year term were Catherine Beath, ’70 B.S. Micrb, vice president of quality systems and regulatory affairs at Ethicon Endo-Surgery, Inc., in Loveland, Ohio; Michael Sivak, ’89 B.S. Chem, a life scientist for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Brooklyn, New York; and James C. Weaver, ’76 Ph.D. Chem, director of the imaging science division at Eastman Kodak Company in Rochester, New York. Also re-appointed to fulfill their terms as officers of the board were Michael P. Freedman, ’65 B.S. Sc, a member of the faculty at Fordham University Graduate School of Education, from Richboro, Pennsylvania; and Edward Nelson M.D., ’65 B.S. Bioch, vice president of medical research and development for McNeil Consumer Products Company, Lower Gwynedd, Pennsylvania.

The annual recognition reception was held in conjunction with the meeting on Friday, October 12. Honored at the reception were the recipients of the 2001 Outstanding Science Alumni Award, the Distinguished Service Award, and the C. I. Noll Award for Excellence in Teaching.

The Outstanding Science Alumni Award was established by the Board of Directors in 1996 to recognize and reward outstanding science alumni for their success as leaders in science and for the impact they have had and will continue to have on society and their professions. Honored this year were Terence Dwyer, ’70 M.A. Math, chief technology officer for BEA Systems, Inc., in San Jose, California; Louise Goeser, ’74 B.S. Math, vice president of quality for Ford Motor Company in Dearborn, Michigan; Daniel Nolan, ’74 Ph.D. Phys, research fellow at Corning, Inc., Corning, New York; and Robert Wilson, ’73 B.S. Sc, a physician and faculty member in cardiovascular medicine at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis.

The Distinguished Service Award is presented annually to individuals who have made significant and outstanding leadership and service contributions to the Eberly College of Science over a sustained period of time. The 2001 honorees were Joanne Cahill, director of development and alumni relations in the Eberly College of Science; James Levin, an advisor and program coordinator in the Eberly College of Science; and Svetlana Katok, professor of mathematics.

Charles Fisher

The 2001 C. I. Noll Award for Excellence in Teaching was presented to Charles Fisher, professor of biology. This award is presented annually to a faculty member within the college who excels in the areas of advising, learning both inside and outside the classroom, contributions to course development, and other areas pertaining to undergraduate affairs.

The Board of Directors of the Eberly College of Science Alumni Society’s mission is to support the goals, objectives, and leadership of the college. Information about becoming a member or questions about the activities of the board may be directed to Suzanne Grieb, assistant director of alumni relations, 430 Thomas Builing, University Park, PA 16802; by telephone at (800) 297-1429, or by e-mail at sds6@psu.edu.

LionLink Matches Alumni and Students

LionLink is a professional networking program sponsored by the Penn State Alumni Association. LionLink matches Penn State students with alumni volunteers based on the students’ occupational and geographic preferences. Students talk with alumni volunteers about jobs, career planning, resume preparation, and interviewing tips. LionLink is not a job placement service and students are not allowed to ask volunteers
for jobs. Volunteers set the parameters of their involvement: contact can range from a brief telephone conversation to an on-site visit.

One of LionLink’s long-range goals is to link alumni volunteers with other alumni for networking purposes. You can enroll as a volunteer through LionLink’s web site at http://www.lionlink.psu.edu. Volunteer enrollment forms also are available by mail.

For more information, contact the LionLink Coordinator in 406A Boucke Building, University Park,
PA 16802-5903, (814) 863-6014, E-mail: LMH11@psu.edu.

Paul Berg, '48 B.S. BIOCH, delivered the first Eberly Family Distinguished Lecture in Science on April 26. The Eberly College of Science established this new lecture series to recognize the generous philanthropic support of the Eberly family of Uniontown, Pennsylvania, and to raise awareness of timely science topics and issues. Berg, an emeritus Stanford University faculty member and winner of the 1980 Nobel prize in chemistry, spoke on the impact of genomics on science and society.

Obituaries

Waddell A. Biggart II, of Martinsburg, West Virginia, died June 9, 2001.

Thomas Wayne Clapper, of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, died on September 27, 1997. He was a 1937 graduate of St. Vincent College, with a bachelor of science in chemistry. He then received a master of science and a doctorate in chemistry from Penn State.

Anthony A. D’Amico, of Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania, died on January 14, 2001. He was a 1960 graduate of Penn State with a master of education degree in physical science.

William R. Johnson, M.D., of Youngstown, Ohio, died March 31, 2001. He received his bachelor of science degree in premedicine in 1957. Dr. Johnson served on the science alumni board. Memorial contributions can be made to the William R. Johnson M.D. Memorial Fund, Penn State University, 430 Thomas Building, University Park, Pennsylvania, 16802.

Thomas S. Oakwood, of State College, Pennsylvania, died April 4, 2001.

Richard Paul Pioch, of Ft. Wayne, Indiana, died on June 16, 2001. He received his M.S. in chemistry from Penn State in 1950 and his Ph.D. in organic chemistry in 1952. Dr. Pioch was a research scientist for Lilly for 35 years, retiring in 1986. While there, he discovered the compound nizatidine, which is the active ingredient in Axid, an ulcer medication.

Earl Willard, of Marietta, Ohio, died on December 26, 2000. Willard received his Ph.D. in Mathematics from Penn State in 1964. He was a professor of mathematics at Marietta College from 1968 to 1999, and professor emeritus before his death.

Alumni Notes

1937

Jack Cole, B.S. PM, recently published two books. In 1999, Mellon Poetry Press published Wandering Voices, a collection of verse, and in 2001, Xlibris Corporation published Richard and Sabina, a biography of the Reverend Richard Wurmbrand and his wife, Sabina.

1939

Charles W. Denko, M.S. Chem, a retired rheumatologist and professor emeritus of Case Western Reserve University, supervised public health in the displaced persons camps in Austria for the U.S. Army in 1945 and 1946. One of his duties was to help repatriate mostly Jewish children abducted during and after WWII.

1948

James D. Shaffer, B.S. Sc, is fully retired as of February, 2000. He is living a "life of leisure and traveling."

1950

A. Eugene Blakeslee, B.S. Chem, recently retired from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, where he led a group researching high efficiency cascade solar cells. Early in his career, Blakeslee worked to improve semiconductor devices for Bell Labs. He then studied the strained-layer superlattice and helped generate a whole new branch of semiconductor science.

Stanley R. Sandler, Ph.D. Chem, retired from ATOFINA Chemicals Research and Development on August 31, 2001, after 28 years of service. He was principal scientist in Thio & Fine Chemicals Research and Development. He has started a consulting company called Chemical Technology Assessments, LLC as of September 1, 2001.

1957

Arthur H. Guenther, Ph.D. Chem, has been awarded the New Mexico Distinguished Public Service Award by Governor Gary Johnson. He also was a member of a recent National Academy of Science study on Optical Science and Engineering, which concluded that optics is a most pervasive and enabling technology that crosscuts many fields.

1958

John W. Shaffner, B.S. Chem, retired from Osram Sylvania, Inc., in February 2001 after 42 years of service. He was inducted into the Osram Sylvania Specialty Florescent Lighting Hall of Fame to commemorate his work.

1961

Harry W. Otto, Ph.D. Chem, recently received the Award of Merit from the National Water Safety Congress. The award recognized Otto for his efforts as a volunteer for acting as an invaluable liaison between the U.S. Coast Guard, U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary, and the State of Delaware. Harry is currently a senior science advisor in the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control.

1963

Kenneth C. Titus, B.S. Sc, recently retired from McDonnell Douglas Aerospace Missile Systems Division as senior project engineer in Materials and Process Engineering/Tomahawk Cruise Missile and Weapons System. He recently enrolled in the Aerospace Technology Program of the Aerospace Center for Education at the Kennedy Space Center, Florida.

1964

Donna Magnuson Tubbs, M.Ed., ’72 D.Ed, has retired from Clearfield Area School District in January 2000 after more than 39 years of teaching biology, science, and anatomy.

1965

Gary E. McGraw, Ph.D. Chem, is currently serving as president of the Council for Chemical Research in Washington, D.C., of which he has been a member since 1994.

1966

Joseph A. Miller, Ph.D. Chem, is now the senior vice president and chief technology officer for Corning Incorporated. Prior to this position, Miller was the chief technology officer and senior vice president for E.I. DuPont de Nemours, Inc. In 1998, Miller was appointed by former President Clinton to serve on the National Science Board, which is responsible for overseeing the National Science Foundation.

1967

Roger Brumback, B.S. PM, was appointed professor and chairman of the Department of Pathology at the Creighton University School of Medicine, Omaha, Nebraska, on January 1, 2001.

1969

John W. Igoe, B.S. CmpSc, retired in April 2000 as vice president of storage products, Hitachi Data Systems. He is now a full-time graduate student in television and film at San Jose State.

1970

E. Richard Raas, Ph.D. Chem, was named director of consulting services at eReinsurse, a provider of e-commerce technology for negotiating the purchase of reinsurance.

George C. Walton, B.S. Bot, ’74 M.S. Biol, contributed a chapter, "Disposal of Shock- and Water-Sensitive, Pyrophoric, and Explosive Materials" to the American Chemical Society’s Handbook of Chemical Health and Safety. In 1986, he started Reactives Management Corp, which provides environmental compliance, chemical safety, explosive ordinance disposal, training and technical services to industrial, academic, and governmental customers. Walton also teaches Continuing Education courses in environmental response work at George Mason University and Old Dominion University in Virginia.

1971

Barry Gordon, B.S. PM, has been appointed the inaugural holder of the Therapeutic Cognitive Neuroscience Professorship in the Neurology Department at the Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions. This endowed chair, together with a gift from the same anonymous donor, will support research into novel ways to improve mental and brain functions.

Allen R. Vaala, Ph.D. Phys, has retired early from Kodak Management. He became the director of the National Center on Employment at the National Technical Institute for the Deaf in Rochester, NY.

Arleen Solomon Zabell, B.S. Sc, is a staff radiologist at the Virginia Medical Center in Coatesville, Pennsylvania. She teaches biology, human anatomy, and physiology at Delaware Valley College.

Carol Brown Zaher, B.S. Zool, recently received a masters degree in public health from UCLA. She works as a consultant for Protocure Sciences, a healthcare consulting company. She lives in Los Angeles with her two sons.

1974

Francis G. Wenzel, B.S. Math, recently married Joann Jeckell Mugford. He is still using his mathematics and science training in the practice of law—trials of medical injury and product defects.

1976

Thomas M. Apple, B.S. PM, has been named dean of graduate education at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, New York. He will continue to teach and conduct research in his new position.

Marcia Gabriel Fox, B.S. Biol, lives in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, and has two children, Gabriel Francis, born in 1993, and Eleanor Margaret, who is a freshman at Penn State’s University Park Campus.

1977

Thomas A. Howley, B.S. Sc, was elected secretary of the Academy of General Dentistry. The Academy of General Dentistry is a non-profit organization of more than 37,000 general dentists dedicated to staying up-to-date in the profession through continuing education.

1981

Thomas P. Brosius, B.S. Phys, ’91 Ph.D. Phys, and his wife, Eleanor B. Brosius, ’88 B.S. Phys, ’89 M.S. Acs, have moved to Centreville, Virginia.

1983

Robert A. Claire, B.S. Micrb, AnBio, is a project director for Transplantation Products at Wyeth-Ayerst Research In Collegeville, Pennsylvania. Robert and his wife, Lorraine Claire, ’82 ChE, have two children, Kristen, 13, and Katie, 9, and live in Wayne, Pennsylvania.

1985

Daniel A. Griffith, Ph.D. Stat, professor of geography at Syracuse University, was recently named a 2001 John Simon Guggenheim Foundation fellow for his statistics work, particularly in the scientific visualization of spatial autocorrelation.

1989

Vicki Afflerbach Pruskowski, B.S. CmpSc, and her husband Kevin, announce the birth of their son, Zachary James, on March 31, 2001. Vicki is a principal consultant for e-tech solutions, Inc. The family resides in Norristown, Pennsylvania.

1990

Alison K. Bauer, B.S. Bioch, received her doctorate in pharmacology from the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center in May 2000 while studying chronic inflammation in mouse lung tumorigenesis. She is currently a postdoctoral fellow at CIIT Centers for Heath Research in North Carolina.

Michelle L. Kovack, B.S. Biol, has been appointed middle school director at Salisbury Academy in North Carolina. She will continue to teach science and math.

Susan Zelt, B.S. Bioch, is a product manager for New Products Planning at Worldwide Human Health Marketing. She is enrolled in the Public Health program at Columbia University.

1993

Catherine Spruitenburg, B.S. Math, and her husband, David Koos, announce the birth of their daughter, Carolyn Michelle, on January 31, 2001. The family currently resides in Palm Bay, Florida.

Angelina Yost, B.S. Biol, married Colm Moore of Dublin, Ireland. Angelina is a park ranger at Big Bend National Park, Texas.

1994

Heather Lynn Benner, B.S. Biol, graduated from the Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine with a Doctor of Osteopathy in June 2001. She recently began her rotating internship in West Palm Beach, Florida.

1996

Betsy (Edgar) Perkins, B.S. Phys, and her husband, Duran, announce the birth of twin daughters, Mary Elisabeth and Emma Sophia on February 22, 2001. Betsy has resigned from working as a mechanical engineer at JDS Uniphese to devote herself to full time work as a domestic engineer, more commonly referred to as "mom."

1998

James R. Ford, B.S. Chem, was recently promoted to research chemist with Shire Laboratories, Inc. of Rockville, Maryland.

2000

David Young, B.S. Sc, works for Terumo Medical Corporation as a cardiovascular technical engineer in Elkton, Minnesota.

Been promoted?  Received an award? Recently married?  Had a baby? Moved?  Retired?  Your fellow alums would like to know.

Send your news items to:

Suzanne Sinclair Grieb
Assistant Director of Alumni Relations
Pennsylvania State University
430 Thomas Building
University Park, PA  16802
e-mail: sds6@psu.edu

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