News and Events

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President-elect Bashar Hanna

The Board of Governors of Pennsylvania’s State System of Higher Education today unanimously selected Bashar W. Hanna to be the next president of Bloomsburg University, effective July 7. Hanna is a professor of biology and former vice president for academic affairs and dean of faculty at Delaware Valley University in Doylestown. He previously was associate provost at Ithaca College and dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences and interim provost at Kutztown University.

“Bashar Hanna has a broad range of both teaching and administrative experience, and has worked closely throughout his career with both students and faculty,” said Board of Governors Chair Cynthia D. Shapira. “With his vast array of skills, his knowledge and his experience, we are confident he will be an excellent leader for Bloomsburg University.”

As vice president for academic affairs at Delaware Valley, Hanna helped implement a $60 million capital campaign; launched a number of new undergraduate and graduate programs, including the school’s first doctoral degree; and created articulation agreements with five Pennsylvania community colleges, leading to a 40 percent increase in transfer students. Delaware Valley achieved university status during his tenure as vice president and dean of faculty.

“Success — both personal and institutional — has been a hallmark of President-select Hanna’s career,” said State System Chancellor Frank T. Brogan. “He will be a valuable addition to our presidential leadership team. I look forward to working with him on behalf of the university and the entire State System.”

Students develop orienteering course for upper campus

Bloomsburg University ROTC cadet Nicolas Correll had an idea one day while sitting in his geographic information system (GIS) class. Instead of driving 30 minutes for ROTC land navigation trainings, why not just create an orienteering course on upper campus?

Orienteering is a race using a map and compass for navigation on an unfamiliar course. This would help not only the ROTC program but the Department of Environmental, Geographical and Geological Sciences as well, as it would be able to use it for compass-based orienteering map in its EGGS 242 map use and analysis classes and in EGGS 360 for a GPS-based orienteering exercise, according to Jeff Brunskill, associate professor of environmental, geographical and geological sciences.

Correll told Brunskill about his idea and just like that the project was underway. Brunskill soon enlisted the help of the rest of the EGGS department and GIS student worker, Patrick Martin. Correll worked with Brunskill to design and install the metal signage and choose locations on upper campus fitting for the course. Martin focused on GIS and associated mapping software to develop an orienteering map.

Service trip to Peru provides valuable life lesson

Perri Harmon says she learned even on her worst days she remains very lucky, a lesson she took from her medical service trip to Peru this past spring.

Harmon, a senior exercise science major, went with Bloomsburg University’s MEDLIFE club — Medicine, Education and Development for Low Income Families Everywhere — which was established in Fall 2016 as a student chapter of the national MEDLIFE non-profit organization. BU is one of three PASSHE universities to have this club.

MEDLIFE’s mission is to help families overcome the constraints of poverty and the organization firmly believes access to quality healthcare is a basic human right. Harmon and thousands of other volunteers stand behind MEDLIFE’s mission by committing time, resources, knowledge, and hope to low income families everywhere.

“It made me rethink what I take for granted and also made me appreciate what I have and how I live,” Harmon said. “The people in the communities we visited had very little, but were some of the happiest people I’ve ever met because they were surrounded by the people and the things they need and not much more.”

ACPA conference experience leaves lasting impression

Presentations covering topics of new generation of college students to drunkorexia were presented by Bloomsburg University’s graduate students this spring at The American College Personal Association (ACPA) college student Educators International Annual Conference in Columbus, Ohio.

“Academic conferences are breeding grounds for innovation,” said Mary (Kate) Orzolek, among the students representing BU’s College Student Affairs program. “ACPA created an excellent platform for the exchanging of ideas and insights for such advancement. Immense curiosity was injected into the presentations and conversations of all practitioners.”

Orzolek added Mindy Andino, assistant professor, has been a significant influence on her and her fellow CSA students, particularly by encouraging them to submit program proposals to conferences.

“Through her guidance, students continually feed their talents and are inspired to set the world ablaze,” Orzolek said.

According to the ACPA, the ACPA17 Curriculum was designed to be purposeful and inclusive. The curriculum, along with the entire ACPA17 involvement, comes from the Convention Experience Goals: connect, experience, reflect, invest, and transform.

“ACPA was a great experience to network and find out how to become involved on a larger scale,” said Maura Wilkerson, a CSA student. “It also helped confirmed my future career path. I can’t wait to go next year!”

Senior’s research on PBIS showcased at state forum

According to the U.S. Department of Education, more than 60 percent of first-time teachers say they’re not sufficiently prepared to face the challenge of addressing the social and emotional needs of today’s students in tandem with achieving academic learning outcomes.

Ashley Smith, a senior early childhood and special education major, will not be one of them.

The recent graduate has spent the past two years as a Fellow with Bloomsburg University’s McDowell Institute for Teacher Excellence in Positive Behavior Support, where she has been focused on researching positive behavioral interventions. Her work will be showcased this week statewide at the 2017 PA PBIS Implementers’ Forum. She is the first BU undergraduate ever to do so, according to Timothy Knoster, Ed.D., executive director of the McDowell Institute and professor of exceptionality programs.

Business students advance in national bank competition

Bloomsburg University has been named as finalist in the nationwide 2017 Community Bank Case Study Competition, facilitated by the Conference of State Bank Supervisors (CSBS).

The BU team is comprised of Keegan Carl, Michael Mintzer, Vicki Yackiel, Austin Golden, Kristopher Gross and videographer Benjamin Staub.

Bloomsburg’s team is among five college teams out of 33 that are advancing as finalists in the bank competition. The other student teams represent Iowa State University, Kutztown University, Texas Tech University and the University of Akron (OH).

BU’s student team is competing for a chance to win scholarship money, an opportunity to present their case at the CSBS-Federal Reserve Community Banking Research and Policy Conference, and an opportunity to have their work published. The first, second and third place winning teams will be announced Thursday, May 25 live via Twitter during the annual state and federal banking regulator forum in New Orleans. The top three teams will get an opportunity to have their reports published in a journal of case study research. The winning team will present their case study at the CSBS-Federal Reserve Community Banking in the 21st Century Research and Policy Conference in September.

CLS recipient readies for Far East abroad experience

Katherine Neteler is one of the four Bloomsburg University students to be awarded with the highly competitive Critical Language Scholarship Program in the past eight years. With a dual major in speech-language pathology and Chinese, Neteler applied for the upcoming program in China.

“I am both excited and nervous, but I know I will have a great time,” said Neteler, a sophomore. “I can’t wait to improve my Chinese speaking skills, even though it’s going to be rigorous process. I will not be allowed to speak English at all, therefore forcing me to use the Chinese language.”

The Critical Language Scholarship Program is a fully funded overseas language and cultural immersion program for American students. The program has a wide range of languages to choose from and covers approximately one academic year of university-level language coursework during an eight- to ten-week program.

Neteler already knew she wanted to immerse herself in the Chinese culture, so she planned ahead and managed her time in order to make the application reflect her passion to travel.

SLP student takes in full conference experience

Graduate school is a whole new world of education. Professor’s change from mentors to colleagues, and the realm of studying expands to encompass hands on experience. Students go from learning about research to pursing it themselves. Olivia Gettys, who is pursuing a Master of Science in Speech-Language Pathology, has taken full advantage of this opportunity.

This spring, Gettys went to the Pennsylvania Speech-Language Hearing Association with four other graduate students in the Speech-Language Pathology Master’s Program along with the department chair, Pamela Smith, Ph.D, CCC-SLP and supervisor Anita Wasileski, M.S. CCC-SLP.

The conference was a series of presentations and seminars for individuals in the field of speech-language pathology. Gettys and her fellow colleagues had the chance to present their research on the topic, “Let’s Talk! People with Aphasia Can Facilitate Conversations.”

Chemistry research gets Golden Gate spotlight

From walking the Golden Gate Bridge to speaking in front of the science community, Bloomsburg University chemistry majors Blake Durante and Olivia Fry had an experience of a lifetime in San Francisco this spring.

They were among more than 8,000 research presentations at the 253rd American Chemical Society National Meeting and Exposition on Advanced Materials, Technologies, and Systems and Processes that also featured more than 300 exhibitors.

Durante and Fry received approval through the American Chemical Society to present at the conference. Durante presented his research, “Determination of Different Properties of Lanthanum Chlorides in Aqueous Solutions.” He had been working on the research for two semesters and presenting it was a requirement of the courses.

“This gave me experience presenting my research,” Durante said. “It also allowed me to network with companies that were there as well as possible graduate schools.”

EGGS major lands competitive internship

Paleontology isn’t a typical career track for an environmental geoscience major, but that’s not stopping Keara Drummer from testing the waters this summer at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City. Drummer, a junior, will be among the select few interning to help curators on the Royal Mapes Collection — a scientific collection of over 500,000 fossil specimens, mostly from the Upper Paleozoic of the central United States. She was one of six chosen for this highly competitive eight-week internship.

“It became a target because the internship does basically what I’ve been doing helping organize the EGGS paleo collection, except on a larger more professional scale,” Drummer said. “I enjoy the nature of the job, and I’m up for the bigger challenge. I’ve always had a fascination for museums as a kid.”

Fulbright Scholar makes history

Becoming a Fulbright Scholar has been a dream of Alexandra Miller's since high school. This summer the Bloomsburg University senior languages and cultures major will get to live her dream when she travels to Argentina as part of the Fulbright Scholar program.

After thinking about what she wanted to do after graduation and what she’s passionate about Miller started the application process. Miller, the first BU student to be a Fulbright Scholar, was naturally thrilled when she learned she was selected.

“I couldn't believe my eyes when I received the email,” Miller says. “I know that this once in a lifetime opportunity that will change my life for the better and will teach me lessons few people are lucky enough to learn in a lifetime. It is always an incredibly rewarding feeling when you achieve something you have worked so hard and long on.”

COST students obtain CAD certification

The following 17 students earned Certified SOLIDWORKS Associate (CSWA) certificates as the culmination of their CAD Engineering Graphics course in Spring 2017, taught by Nathaniel Greene. A three-hour examination tested students’ ability to make three-dimensional computer models of mechanical parts and assemblies. SOLIDWORKS is the industry-leading CAD software. CSWA is a global exam that is given in 12 languages, and Bloomsburg University is an official test site.

Vincent Barbati, Computer Science; Caleb Bridi, Electronics Engineering Technology (EET); Vincenzo Bucanelli, EET; Edson Castillo, EET; James Catarroja, EET / Physics; Luke Derstine, EET; Vrunda Desai, EET; Ty-nia Dorsey, EET; Spencer Dunkle, Engineering Science; Miguel George, EET; William Hogan, Digital Forensics; Cameron Lu, Engineering Science; Mitchell McLeod, Engineering Science; Dylan Mellinger, EET; Emily Mottern, EET; Daniel Nguyen, Engineering Science; and Kyle Sisco, EET.

Faculty tenure and promotions for Fall 2017

The following faculty members have been granted promotion effective Fall 2017.

• Faculty Promoted to Professor &38212; Brett McLaurin, Environmental, Geographical, and Geological Sciences; Mindi Miller, Nursing; Lam Nguyen, Management and International Business
  Margaret O’Connor, Innovation, Technology, and Supply Chain Management; Megumi Omori, Sociology, Social Work, and Criminal Justice; Yanhui Pang, Exceptionality Programs; Safa Saraçoğlu, History; Qing Yue, Audiology and Speech Pathology
• Faculty Promoted to Associate Professor — Charisse Baldoria, Music, Theatre and Dance; Diane Barrett, Mathematics and Digital Sciences; Angelo Costanzo, English; Denise Davidson, Teaching and Learning; Kenneth Hall, Marketing and Professional Sales; Seung Hoon Jang, Management and International Business; Yahya Laayouni, Languages and Cultures; Kuo-Hao Lee, Finance; Eric Lesneski, Sociology, Social Work, and Criminal Justice; David Miller, Music, Theatre and Dance; Mikola Polyuha, Languages and Cultures; Todd Shawver, Accounting; Caryn Terwilliger, Teaching and Learning; Dong Zhang, Mathematics and Digital Sciences
• Faculty Granted Tenure — Charisse Baldoria, Music, Theatre and Dance; Virginia Bonomo, Teaching and Learning; Angelo Costanzo, English; Denise Davidson, Teaching and Learning; Nancy Giles, Psychology; Cheryl Jackson, Nursing; Seung Hoon Jang, Management and International Business; Yahya Laayouni, Languages and Cultures; Kuo-Hao Lee, Finance; David Miller, Music, Theatre and Dance; Lam Nguyen, Management and International Business; Mikola Polyuha, Languages and Cultures; Dong Zhang, Mathematics and Digital Sciences