Dr. David L. Soltz, provost and senior vice president for academic affairs at Central Washington University, has been selected to serve as the next president of Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania. Dr. Soltz will begin his tenure at Bloomsburg on January 7. He will replace Dr. Jessica S. Kozloff, who has served as the University's president since July 1994. Dr. Kozloff will retire at the end of the year. Soltz was named provost of Central Washington in August 2001. Previously, he served for five years as dean of the College of Natural and Social Sciences at California State University at Los Angeles. Details.
BU's music program has earned accreditation from the National Association of Schools of Music (NASM). The program is one of 617 programs accredited nationally. The accreditation process began five years ago and has been an ongoing process. Details.
BU freshman Jorge Maldonado is the only student in Pennsylvania and one of only 250 students from across the country to be awarded a scholarship through the Dell Scholars Program. The Dell Scholarship, funded through the Michael and Susan Dell Foundation, is awarded to students with qualifying financial need who participate in a college readiness program. Since 2004, the foundation has provided more than $9 million in college scholarships to cover the costs of tuition, fees, books and room and board. Details.
The student representative on BU's Council of Trustees wants to make sure he stays involved. "There are really no set boundaries on how involved you can be and I want to be really hands-on," said James D'Amico, Mount Carmel, a senior majoring in elementary education. D'Amico was interviewed by a search and screen committee of nine individuals and then another interview by Judy Hample, chancellor of the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education, before he was appointed by Gov. Ed Rendell. Details.
Christopher Bevan, president of the Community Government Association at BU, came to the university with a plan to be involved in student government. "It turned out that my orientation workshop leader was the president of CGA so, when I asked him how to get involved, he showed me where to sign up," said Bevan. Bevan, a native of Nanticoke and a graduate of Greater Nanticoke High School, is a junior at BU majoring in history. Details.
David W. Klingerman Sr. of Bloomsburg is the newest member of Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania's Council of Trustees. Vice president of JDK Management Co., Klingerman oversees the operations of nursing facilities, hotels and restaurants, as well as land development. He has owned and operated nursing care and assisted living facilities in northeast Pennsylvania since 1981 and earned certification as a licensed nursing home administrator in 1983. Details.
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A Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania student landed a summer job with the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation. Although she wasn’t turning a sign or working with heavy equipment, she did help pave the way for future road construction.
Stephanie Roberts
Stephanie Roberts, a junior at BU, interned with PennDOT during summer 2005. Roberts worked on future construction sites to find out about the land before construction could start. Most of her work was done on an archeological site in Pike County.
“It was the site of a proposed intersection realignment and, to get clearance for construction, the site must be scoped,” said Roberts, who is majoring in environmental planning and French.
When a proposed construction site is “scoped,” PennDOT’s Environmental/Cultural Resources Unit tries to assess possible impacts that the construction might have on the land and stream quality.
“Many of the sites are bridges over steams that are stocked with trout and other fish, so they look to see how that would be affected,” Roberts said.
Endangered species, plants and animals as well as historical places also are taken into consideration before starting construction.
“Most of the archeological work is given to consultants that PennDOT hires. We work closely with them, but we don’t do much of the excavation,” said Roberts.
While working on the site this summer, Roberts’s group found remnants of a wood mill from the 1800s. They also located arrowheads, charcoal from fire pits and pieces of pottery from Native American settlements.
Roberts also mapped out the lay of the Gravity Railroad in Wayne County. The railroad stretched from Pittston in Luzerne County to Hawley in Wayne County. Roberts first mapped the railroad by hand and then used GIS, Geographical Information Systems, to map it out.
“We don’t want construction to disturb it. We already lost part of it because of some bridge construction so we want to make sure that doesn’t happen again,” said Roberts.
Roberts, who served as an environment intern, learned about the internship opportunity through her sister who also worked with PennDOT.
“Working with PennDOT was a great experience, I got to meet many people in the archaeological field and I got a good feel for the many options that the field offers.
Roberts, a native of Lenoxville, is a graduate of Mountain View Junior Senior High School.
