Alumni and Philanthropy News
Science Journal, Spring 1999 -- Vol 16, No. 1
Alumni and Friends,
Wonderful things are happening in the Eberly College of Science. We welcomed a new dean in the fall, our faculty members remain involved in exciting and innovative research programs, and our students continue to be ranked among the highest in the nation.
Penn State is now actively involved in a multi-year campaign. Called "A Grand Destiny: The Penn State Campaign," the Eberly College of Science joins the overall University effort in building the College endowment, which supports students, faculty, and programs. The power of endowment is its permanence, making it possible to create both an immediate impact and a lasting influence with a gift. The article that follows describes the campaign objectives. You will hear more about this important initiative in the months ahead.
As always, we extend to each and every one of you an open invitation to let us know what's happening in your lives. Write to us in 430 Thomas Building, e-mail us, or phone us at (814) 863-8454. Better yet, if you find yourself on campus, drop by to see us! In addition, we hope to have more opportunities to visit with alumni off-campus during the coming year. Let's keep in touch.
Joanne T. Cahill, director of development and alumni relations -- jtc7@psu.edu
Suzanne Sinclair Grieb, assistant director of alumni relations -- sds6@psu.edu
"As a result of a Pennsylvania State College education, students should look upon themselves not merely as winners of bread, but as a moral force in the world, with noble powers which they must rightly employ, with high duties which they must fulfill, and with the possibilities of a grand destiny which they must labor to achieve."
Penn State's seventh president's eloquent statement continues to mirror the aspirations of Penn State today. In today's society we must educate our students so that they are capable not only of holding a job, but also of holding a rational conversation; of working not just across borders, but across oceans; of debating public issues with insight, energy, and respect. To meet these goals, we must focus on Penn State people (faculty, students, alumni, and staff) who are the University.
To maintain our commitment of high academic quality and access to higher education for all, Penn State must improve its performance in every aspect of its threefold mission of teaching, research, and service. It is clear that to maintain and even improve upon our mission, we must develop increased financial support; we must supplement funds appropriated by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania--which in inflation-adjusted dollars have declined dramatically in the past two decades--and from our students and their parents, whose ability to pay the increasing costs of higher education has many limitations.
President Graham Spanier believes Penn State can and should be the leading model of how a land-grant university successfully integrates undergraduate and graduate education, research, continuing and distance education, cooperative extension, technology transfer and promotion of economic development, public and professional service, and the cultural advancement of our society.
The way to achieve this ambitious agenda is to create a better balance among all sources of funding (public appropriations, tuition dollars, research funding, and philanthropy) a balance which will sustain Penn State into the next century. Thanks to past generosity of Penn State alumni and friends, the University has created a strong philanthropic base. President Spanier and University trustees have made a strong institutional commitment to build and increase this base of private support and have set forth priorities for a new campaign focused on achieving President Atherton's vision of "a grand destiny." For this campaign to succeed, we must excite all those who respect and admire the University, and give them reason to give generously to Penn State.
A Grand Destiny: The Penn State Campaign will focus on increasing our endowment and supporting our students, faculty, and programs. The major goals are to:
Undergraduate Student Support
The Eberly College of Science is among the nation's premier centers for training the next generation of scientists and seeks to provide its faculty with a steady flow of talented undergraduate students. Such students are much in demand yet vital to the academic reputation of the college. Attractive financial packages are essential in today's competitive market and necessary if we are to improve access to higher education to all qualified candidates. The financial assistance and unique learning opportunities Penn State offers these talented applicants is often the deciding factor in their choice of school. It is also critical that the college offer not only traditional financial support like scholarships, but also other learning opportunities such as cooperative education programs, tutorial programs, enhanced hands-on learning facilities, summer research experiences, etc. A research University is uniquely positioned to offer these opportunities which will greatly enhance the undergraduate experience, and state-of-the art facilities which mimic those in industry will allow students to be better prepared for their post-academia experiences.
Graduate Student Support
Talented graduate students are an important component in many faculty research programs. The mentoring opportunities, which they present for undergraduates, complement both the undergraduate and graduate learning experience.
Fellowships, scholarships and other support for graduate students provide the ability to compete for the most talented graduate students in the nation and the world. The ability to successfully recruit these top performers enhances the intellectual vitality of the college and accelerates the advancement toward an international reputation of excellence in the basic sciences.
Faculty Support
A nationally distinguished faculty is the key measure of a University's prestige. In a highly competitive environment for faculty recruitment, the Eberly College of Science must distinguish itself from its peers when it seeks to garner those scientists who will significantly advance the frontiers of the mathematical, physical and life sciences through their research while making pace-setting advancements in science education. Offering the prestige of an endowed chair, professorship, or fellowship will be an essential component of the college's recruitment strategy. Additionally, the college wishes to recognize key leadership roles, such as dean or department head. These endowed leadership chairs will provide added discretionary support, not for the chairholder, but for the college or department over which he/she presides.
Because distinguished visiting faculty provide important contributions to the intellectual discourse among students and faculty, the college will seek support that will enable it to offer visiting appointments. While permanent faculty appointments will remain the top priority, the opportunity to engage scholars from around the world in the intellectual life of the college is highly desirable.
Finally, scientific research and teaching require state-of-the-art equipment and facilities, which are increasingly sophisticated, delicate, expensive and computerized. The college must maintain an outstanding working environment for its faculty and students. Where possible, the college will strive also to offer its faculty and students the opportunity to exchange insights with peers at symposia, conferences, and professional meetings. Support from traditional funding sources for these professional development opportunities is limited.
Program Support
To remain in the forefront of learning, the College must constantly refresh and renew its academic program. As an example, many of the most pressing tasks facing the world are at the interface between biology and technology: improving human health in a cost-effective way, protecting our environment and its vast and valuable diversity of organisms, and providing the food and agricultural products demanded by an ever expanding human population. The Biotechnology Innovation Fund will provide seed grants to support faculty research on high-risk and fundamentally new ideas that address these and other issues. Charting new courses in highly speculative areas is not likely to attract funding from traditional sources. Yet, biotechnology is intrinsically innovative and the college wishes to enable its researchers to explore radically new ideas and approaches to problems, while endeavoring to develop the commercial application of research supported by the fund.
The college also wishes to embrace and integrate the latest advancements in instruction and instructional technologies. While the lecture hall will remain an integral part of the University, the college is eager to incorporate new and emerging technologies that can enhance the student's learning experience. Additionally, co-operative education and summer research experiences will reinforce classroom learning; for this reason, the college seeks to broaden these opportunities to reach more students.
Faculty awards, public service lectures, seminars for secondary science teachers, industrial visitors programs, and state-of-the-art equipment will strengthen the College's ability to fulfill its mission of teaching, research and service. In a sense, support for this campaign objective serves as "venture capital" that allows the College to retain leadership in many fields where it already enjoys distinction and enables it to chart new courses for its many constituents.
These campaign objectives will help the Eberly College of Science achieve its overarching goal: to accomplish a very high level of distinction in each of its scientific disciplines and in the delivery of excellent science education to all Penn State students who walk through its doors. The college will accomplish these objectives by recruiting and retaining the most talented and dedicated students and faculty and providing them with the materials and facilities that enable them to succeed. Of all the sources of revenue available to fund the academic enterprise, private support holds the greatest potential for growth and the greatest opportunity to respond quickly to the needs of a rapidly changing world.
A Grand Destiny: The Penn State Campaign is the most ambitious fund-raising effort the University ever has undertaken and its outcome will affect the quality of Penn State's educational programs for years to come. The ambitious philanthropic agenda will be realized only if each member of the Penn State family is moved to give of his or her own resources and to advocate our institutional vision to other prospective donors.
The campaign extends to all Penn State's alumni and friends around the world. It will be a top priority for the trustees, administration, faculty, alumni, and volunteer leadership for the next several years. An extensive network of volunteers has been recruited to help Penn State reach these campaign goals. In partnership with college faculty and staff, these volunteers are serving as advocates for the Eberly College of Science by presenting the case for funding to alumni, friends, corporations, and foundations.
As we go to press, the public phase of the campaign is just beginning.
The goals for the campaign and progress to date will be announced at the
campaign kickoff weekend from April 23 to 25. Look for more information
about the campaign in the months ahead.
Edward J. Beckwith, '71 B.S. Sc, and Stephen H. Mahle, '69 M.S. Phys, were named 1998 Alumni Fellows by the Penn State Alumni Association. This award is the most prestigious honor given by the association.
Edward J. Beckwith has been a partner in the law firm of Baker & Hostetler LLP in Washington, D.C., since 1984. His areas of emphasis include tax-exempt organizations, personal-wealth administration, charitable giving, trusts and estates, and closely held businesses. After receiving his bachelor's degree in science from Penn State in 1971, Beckwith went on to receive his juris doctor degree in 1974 from the Georgetown University Law Center, where he taught legal writing and research. While in law school, he served as a staff assistant for the Council on Environmental Quality in the Executive Office of the President of the United States and as a law clerk in the U.S. Department of Justice. After graduating from law school, he joined the law firm of Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Kampelman in Washington, D.C. He left that firm in 1982 to join Baker & Hostetler LLP. In 1983 Beckwith received a master of laws in taxation from the Georgetown University Law Center and in 1984 he became a partner in Baker & Hostetler LLP.
Beckwith is active in both the American and the District of Columbia Bar Associations and in the American Law Institute. In addition, he is state chair and a Fellow of the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel. Beckwith lectures throughout the United States and has written extensively, including articles and speeches for the Council on Foundations and the American Law Institute/American Bar Association Committee on Continuing Professional Education. He is the founder and chair of the Advanced Estate Planning Institute, which is sponsored annually by the Georgetown University Law Center. In addition, Beckwith is an adjunct tax professor at the Georgetown University Law Center, where he teaches graduate seminars in Advanced Estate Planning and Charitable Organizations and Planned Giving.
Stephen H. Mahle has held leadership positions since 1972 at Medtronic, a Minneapolis-based medical technology company specializing in implantable and interventional therapies, such as pacemakers. He was named senior vice president of the company and president of cardiac rhythm management in January 1998. In this position, he is responsible for overseeing operations and development for bradycardia pacing, tachyarrhythmia management, and cardiorhythm. He also oversees development activities directed toward new device-based therapies for heart failure and atrial fibrillation. In addition, Mahle is responsible for two large integrated-component suppliers, Medtronic Micro-Rel and Medtronic Promeon.
During his twenty-six years at Medtronic, Mahle has held numerous management positions, including reliability engineer for leads and power sources; manager for product development, programmers, and implantable pulse generators; director of corporate development; vice president for world-wide strategy and planning; vice president for pacing marketing; vice president and general manager for brady pacing; and president of brady pacing. He was the product development manager on the first Medtronic Programmer and was responsible for the formation of Medtronic Promeon.
Mahle received a bachelor's degree in physics from Beloit College in 1967 and a master's degree in physics from Penn State in 1969. From 1969 to 1972, Mahle served in the U.S. Army as a captain and a research scientist in the NASA Manned Spacecraft Center in Houston.
Mahle is a member of the Board of Trustees of Beloit College and past
chair of United Theological Seminary. He also serves on the boards
of Advanced Material Technology, Inc. and the Greater Minneapolis Council
of Churches.
The recipients of the 1998 Outstanding Science Alumni Awards are Joseph H. Eberly, Andrew Carnegie Professor of Physics and professor of optics at the University of Rochester; Louis A. Martarano, director of project finance at Merrill Lynch International; James H. Plonka, vice president for advanced materials and venture capital at The Dow Chemical Company; and Barbara J. Scheffler, president of The Scheffler Group, Inc.
The award, established in 1997 by the Board of Directors of the Penn State Eberly College of Science Alumni Society, recognizes outstanding science alumni for their leadership in science and for the impact they have had and will continue to have on society and on their professions.
Joseph H. Eberly, '57 B.S. Phys, conducts research in the area of quantum optics and laser science and is director of the Rochester Theory Center for Optical Science and Engineering. Eberly is a Fellow of the American Physical Society and the Optical Society of America, and has received several awards, including the Charles Hard Townes Award from the Optical Society of America, the Marian Smoluchowski Medal from the Physical Society of Poland, and the Alexander von Humboldt Senior Award from the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation of West Germany.
Eberly has been a visiting research fellow at the University of Colorado, the Science and Engineering Council of Great Britain, Imperial College in London, and the Max Planck Institute for Quantum Optics in Germany. He also has been a visiting professor at universities in countries all over the world, including Australia, Belgium, England, Germany, New Zealand, Poland, Spain, and the United States. Eberly has published over 250 research articles and has written or edited five books. He was the founding editor of the journal Optics Express in 1996 and currently is physics advisory editor for John Wiley/Interscience and a member of the editorial board of the journal Laser Physics.
As Director of Project Finance for Merrill Lynch International, Louis A. Martarano, '76 B.S. Chem, heads the London Project Finance Group and works with clients in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the former Soviet Union. Martarano joined Merrill Lynch in 1992 after spending eleven years with Kidder, Peabody & Co. Inc., where he served as senior vice president of the Project and Lease Finance Group. He also has served as operations manager for M&S Enterprises, and has worked for W.R. Grace & Co. as an analyst in the European Technical Products Division and as a manufacturing chemist in the Dewey and Almy Chemical Division.
In 1995, Martarano created the Louis A. Martarano Endowment for Cooperative Education Abroad, a fund designed to provide financial assistance to outstanding Penn State students enrolled in the Eberly College of Science Cooperative Education Program. He currently serves on the Eberly College of Science B.S./M.B.A. Program Advisory Panel and the Science Campaign Committee. Martarano also is a volunteer and fundraiser for Covenant House, a sponsor of the Merrill Lynch Student/Sponsor Partnership, and a Merrill Lynch employment recruiter, heading the Penn State recruiting team.
James H. Plonka, '70 Ph.D. Chem, began his career with The Dow Chemical Company in 1970 as a research chemist. He has held many research management positions for Dow and its subsidiaries in the United States and Japan, including global operations manager for propylene and derivatives, urethane chemicals, and amines; director of planning and of specialty chemicals for Dow Chemical Japan, Ltd.; director of research and development of the Coatings and Resins and Performance Products Departments; business director of new ventures and chemicals and performance products; chairman of the board of Boride Products, Inc., a Dow subsidiary; and global business director for advanced materials. Under Plonka's direction, the Advanced Materials Unit, which includes electronic materials, electronic components, venture capital, and ceramic materials, was established as a global business at Dow.
Plonka recently returned to Penn State to speak to students participating in the Material Physics Workshop and students enrolled in the Science B.S./M.B.A. Program.
Barbara J. Scheffler, '72 B.S. Math, '73 M.S. Stat, recently started a statistical consulting firm, The Scheffler Group, Inc. She formerly had been associated since 1987 with 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 was responsible for coordinating the activities of several departments, including clinical research and development, pharmaceutical operations, regulatory affairs, and marketing and sales. She also communicated the company's scientific and regulatory strategies and data to the financial community, public relations firms, and corporate partners. Prior to joining U.S. Bioscience, Scheffler worked for SmithKline Beecham in World-wide Clinical Research and Development, during which time she served as manager for clinical science administration and held leadership positions in the biostatistics and clinical information departments.
Scheffler is the author or coauthor of numerous scholarly publications
and also has presented her research at many national conferences and seminars.
She has returned to Penn State on several occasions to speak to graduate
students in statistics and has been an active participant in the Penn State
Math Options Program established to encourage young women to pursue careers
in science and math.
Penn State has presented the Distinguished Alumni Award from the Eberly College of Science to Albert Montgomery Kligman, M.D., of Philadelphia. The award is the University's highest honor, bestowed upon an outstanding alumnus or alumna, whose "personal lives, professional achievements and community service exemplify the objectives of their Alma Mater."
Kligman received his bachelor's degree in botany in 1939. He is professor emeritus of dermatology of the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine and director of the Aging Skin Clinic and attending physician at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania.
In 1978, Dr. Kligman developed Retin-A as a treatment for acne. Ten
years later, studies showed it also removed wrinkles, reversed sun damage
and skin tumors. His discovery led to the development of may new "retinoids,"
which had a major impact on clinical medicine. Author of more than 900
scientific papers and co-author of seven books, Kligman has a knack for
explaining his science in layman's terms. He enrolled at Penn State Mont
Alto as a freshman, transferring to University Park two years later. He
majored in botany, became co-captain of the gymnastics team, made Phi Beta
Kappa and won a John W. White Fellowship.
Robert L. Berger, Patricia A. Blasko, Gregory L. Geoffroy, and Joseph T. Keiser are the recipients of the 1998 Penn State Eberly College of Science Alumni Society Distinguished Service Award, the society's highest honor.
Established in 1979, the Distinguished Service Award is presented annually to individuals who have made exceptional service and leadership contributions to the college or its alumni society.
Robert L. Berger, '53 M.S. Phys, '56 Ph.D. Phys, works to increase the visibility of Penn State and the Eberly College of Science by helping students from the college acquire co-operative education positions at the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute of the National Institutes of Health and at the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research. He has held senior-level positions in both organizations. According to Susan E. Knell, director of the Eberly College of Science Office of Cooperative Education, Penn State science students have benefited greatly from Berger's efforts. "Co-op students working with Dr. Berger have found him to be a wonderful mentor," Knell says. "Their co-op experiences under his guidance provide students with hands-on learning that greatly enhances their under-graduate education, while also exposing them to the real world of scientific research."
Berger held several leadership positions within the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute from 1962 to 1994, including senior scientist in the laboratory of technical development, chief of the section on biophysical instrumentation, and invention development coordinator. While on sabbatical from the institute from 1969 to 1971, Berger was a visiting scientist in the School of Medicine at the University of California at San Diego. When he left the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute in 1994, he joined the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research as a senior investigator in Blood Research Detachment, and then retired in 1996.
Berger earned a bachelor of science degree in physics and mathematics at Colorado State University in 1950. He was a physics instructor at Park College in Missouri from 1950 to 1951. Berger earned a fellowship from Penn State for his doctoral studies, which he completed in 1956. After earning his doctorate, he spent a year as an American Cancer Society British-American Postdoctoral Exchange Fellow. Berger returned to teaching in 1957, when he became an assistant professor of physics at Utah State University. He was promoted to associate professor in 1960 and left teaching in 1962 to join the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.
Berger is a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the American Physical Society. He has published over 100 research papers.
Patricia A. Blasko served the Penn State Eberly College of Science for over forty years. She served as administrative assistant for the Department of Physics from 1981 until her retirement in 1998. In this position she supervised the physics department's administrative office and oversaw staff members who ran the laboratories and computer operations. According to Howard Grotch, formerly interim dean of the Eberly College of Science and head of the Department of Physics, Blasko was an invaluable employee. "Pat has served the college with amazing dedication and great skill," Grotch says. "She did an incredibly competent job and I was truly lucky to work so closely and so well with her for so long."
Blasko began her career at Penn State in 1955 as a clerical assistant in the Arts and Science Extension office. In 1959, she joined the College of Chemistry and Physics as secretary to the associate dean for common-wealth campuses and continuing education. In 1981 she became an administrative assistant in the Department of Physics in the college, which had by then been renamed the College of Science.
Gregory L. Geoffroy was dean of the Eberly College of Science from 1989 to 1997. He is currently vice president for academic affairs and provost at the University of Maryland, where he served as interim president from June 1 through September 15, 1998. According to Penn State President Graham B. Spanier, Geoffroy implemented numerous initiatives while dean of the Eberly College of Science that have strengthened the quality of instruction and research in the sciences at Penn State. His work "helped bring the Eberly College of Science into the top tier of science colleges in America," Spanier says.
Geoffroy began his academic career in 1974 at Penn State as an assistant professor of chemistry. He was promoted to associate professor in 1978 and to professor in 1982. In 1988, he was appointed chair of the Department of Chemistry, and one year later became dean of the Eberly College of Science. During his time at Penn State, Geoffroy established a research and teaching program in the area of organo-metallic chemistry. He earned his bachelor of science degree in chemistry in 1968 at the University of Louisville and his doctoral degree in chemistry in 1974 at the California Institute of Technology. Before pursuing his doctorate, he served for two years as an officer in the U.S. Navy.
In addition to his university appointments, Geoffroy has served as a consultant to the Union Carbide Corporation and ARCO Chemical. He also has served on the editorial boards of the journals Organo-metallics and Inorganica Chimica Acta. Geoffroy has been an active member of the American Chemical Society and is currently chair of the personnel committee and a member of the Space Telescope Institute committee of the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy.
Geoffroy has published over 200 research articles in refereed journals and is coauthor with M.S. Wrighton of the book Organo-metallic Photochemistry. He has been honored for his accomplishments with a Camille and Henry Dreyfus Teacher-Scholar Award and fellowships from the Alfred P. Sloan and John Simon Guggenheim Foundations. Geoffroy has held visiting professorships at the University of Konstanz in Germany and Louis Pasteur University in France. In 1991 he was elected a Fellow in the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and in 1997 he was recognized as an Alumni Fellow by his alma mater, the University of Louisville.
Joseph T. Keiser is director of Penn State's General Chemistry Laboratories. Since arriving at Penn State in 1991, he has been a leader in the complete revision of the General Chemistry Laboratory Program and has instituted an intensive training program for teaching assistants. Keiser also has participated in the design and development of Penn State's Chemistry Resource Center, of which he is co-director. According to Peter Jurs, interim head of the Department of Chemistry, Keiser's infectious enthusiasm about his work helps his students get more out of their academic experience. "Dr. Keiser shows that he truly cares about his students by taking the time to talk to them and inspire them to dig deeper into the chemical questions his lab experiments pose," Jurs says. Robert D. Minard, senior lecturer in chemistry and director of the Organic Instructional Laboratories, adds, "He does his work with such relish and energy that you soon find yourself infected with the same excitement."
Keiser earned his bachelor of science degree in chemistry in 1974 at St. Lawrence University and his doctoral degree in physical chemistry in 1981 at the University of Rhode Island. Prior to pursuing his Ph.D., he was a research assistant for Pfizer Chemical Corporation from 1974 to 1976. He was a research associate at the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory from 1981 to 1983, when he became an assistant professor of chemistry at the University of Richmond. From 1989 to 1991, he was a visiting assistant professor of chemistry at Virginia Commonwealth University.
Keiser has received fellowships from the National Research Council and
the National Aeronautics and Space Administration-American Society for
Engineering Education, in addition to two Teaching Effectiveness Grants
from the University of Rhode Island. His research has been published
in numerous scholarly publications.
Richard J. Frisque, professor of biochemistry and molecular biology, and Mary McCammon, professor emerita of mathematics, are recipients of the C.I. Noll Award for Excellence in Teaching. Frisque received the award in 1997 and McCammon was honored in 1998.
Sponsored by the Eberly College of Science Student Council and Alumni Society, the award is the college's highest honor for undergraduate teaching. The winner is chosen by a committee of students and faculty from nominees suggested by students, faculty, and alumni. The award includes a monetary grant and the inscription of the winner's name on a plaque with the names of previous C.I. Noll Award winners.
Richard J. Frisque has taught both undergraduate and graduate courses ranging throughout the biochemistry and molecular biology curriculum at Penn State. He has received consistently high evaluations from his students, who have commented on his clarity, organization, and enthusiasm; his approachability; and his enjoyable sense of humor. Frisque says "my interactions with my students, both in the classroom and in the laboratory, are guided by a respect and a real concern for them as individuals." "Because of his superior teaching ability, Dr. Frisque is one of the most highly sought-after undergraduate and graduate mentors in the department," says Robert A. Schlegel, professor and head of the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology.
Frisque also is dedicated to teaching his students ethical standards
in science. He created, developed, and taught a graduate course titled
"Ethical Issues in Biomedical Science" and went on to integrate the study
of ethics into undergraduate science courses. He has volunteered
to conduct sessions on integrating ethics into technical courses for other
faculty at Penn State.
A specialist in viral pathogenicity and oncogenicity, Frisque's research
centers on the molecular aspects and the unique biology of the human JC
virus (JCV). The virus is known to infect nearly 70 percent of the
adult population worldwide and, in certain individuals, can lead to a fatal
brain disease and may play a role in some cancers.
Frisque was appointed to the International Committee on the Taxonomy of Viruses in 1988 and to the American Type Culture Collection Advisory Committee in 1993, was invited to participate in the "Ethics Across the Curriculum Workshop" in 1994, and was the recipient of the first Penn State Graduate Teaching award in 1992 and the Daniel Tershak Award for Outstanding Teaching in 1995.
Mary McCammon taught mathematics at Penn State from 1954 until her retirement in 1998. She was director of undergraduate programs and the scheduling officer for the Department of Mathematics.
McCammon is well known for her personal concern for her students and her excellent teaching methods. "Mary McCammon has brought honor to the Department of Mathematics through her professionalism, her energy, and her citizenship," says Gary L. Mullen, professor and chair of the Department of Mathematics. "She has brought the joy and discipline of scholarship to her students through her enthusiasm, knowledge, and personal interest."
McCammon has played a key role in the development of the undergraduate mathematics curriculum at Penn State. She created the mathematics placement test given to every entering freshman and has continually revised this test since its inception over twenty-five years ago.
McCammon has won numerous awards over the past 40 years, including the
Christian R. and Mary Lindback Award for Distinguished Teaching in 1982,
the Teresa Cohen Award for Service to the Mathematics Department in 1984,
and the Eberly College of Science Alumni Society Award for Inspiring Teaching
and Advising in 1991. The Allied Signal Corporation recently donated
funds for the establishment of two scholarships in McCammon's name.
She is an award-winning member of the Mathematical Association of America.