In touch - Saint Joseph's College of Maine

Saint Joseph’s 

a u t u m n 2 0 0 9 v o l u m e 5 c o l l e g e o f m a i n e m a g a z i n e 

In touch 

Online professors thousands 

of miles away can engage 

students in ways that make 

them feel at home. 

Twila Weiszbrod, shown 

here, is one. Meet others, 

inside on page 16.

A L U M N I H I G H L I G H T 

Jean Szilagyi ’92,’99 

Giving without borders 

J 

ean Szilagyi of Conneaut, Ohio, helps to run a nonprofit 

organization and teaches a course on long-term 

care laws and regulations for the online Graduate & 

Professional Studies division. 

“I always put my students first,” states Jean of 

balancing her teaching duties with her work for 

Sharing America’s Resources Abroad (SARA), an 

organization co-founded by her and her husband in 

cooperation with the United Church of Christ. 

SARA sends money, medical equipment no longer 

in use by American facilities, and other supplies to 

needy countries. It also helps to coordinate specialized 

education for foreign medical personnel. As an 

ambassador for SARA, Jean has traveled to Hungary, 

Ukraine, Slovakia, Serbia, Romania and El Salvador. 

“My husband would like to say I do everything,” 

Jean says of her role, “but I mostly handle all of the 

written communications and computer work.” 

She has also traveled to England, Scotland 

and Italy for pleasure. “I always tell my students, 

‘Do what you want to do and make time for what you 

want to do,’” she says of scheduling personal pursuits. 

Now a doctoral candidate in health sciences at a 

college in Hungary, Jean also writes for Hungarian 

journals on Alzheimer’s. A former health care facilities 

compliance surveyor and university lecturer, she 

now serves as a consultant to Lorantffy Care Center 

and on the board of directors for a rehabilitation center. 

Amid her many commitments to her students and 

the world, this busy and high-spirited alumna tries to 

squeeze in time for her beloved crossword puzzles. 

Ph.D. candidate, University of Pecs, Hungary, 2008-present 

Honorary Doctorate (M.D.), 

University of Uzghorod, Ukraine, 2003 

Master of Health Services Administration, 

Saint Joseph’s College, 1999 

Bachelor of Science in Professional Arts, 

Saint Joseph’s College, 1992 

Diploma, St. Elizabeth Hospital School of Nursing, 1965

T A B L E O F C O N T E N T S 


C O L L E G E M A G A Z I N E 

DISPATCHES 

3 The new journalism: are we just talking at each other 

4 College part of consortium receiving large federal 

grant to combat invasive milfoil in Maine lakes 

6 New athletics web site, new educational partnership, 

new urban service learning program 

7 Theology professor headed to Middle East for research 

8 Education majors revive story hour for area kids 

9 Inside game day: a different kind of headset 

FEATURES 

page 9 

10 James Gott ’90 travels in the fast lane as L. L. Bean 

product developer 

12 What’s good for students can be good for business 

15 Iraq veteran transitions to nursing student 

16 Meet a quartet of engaging online professors 

ALUMNI NEWS 

20 Homecoming gallery of photos 

25 Alumni Weekend update 

page 12 

26 Photos, photo, photos 

27 Class Notes 

Congrats to our fall sports teams! 

Women’s field hockey and women’s 

soccer made it to the conference 

semifinals, and the men’s soccer team 

triumphed as 2009 Great Northeast 

Athletic Conference Champions! 

page 10 

COVER PHOTO BY FRED FIELD

F R O M T H E P R E S I D E N T 



Dear Members of the 

Saint Joseph’s College Community, 

W e all know that great teaching is a key ingredient 

to a great college. Our cover story in this issue 

speaks to how our online professors establish a 

strong connection with students, despite never seeing them face-to-face. You 

will see they care about their students as people and make them feel part of 

an online “classroom.” 

I am happy to announce a $500,000 federal grant received by the Maine 

Milfoil Consortium, of which we are a proud member. Honoring our location 

on Sebago Lake, we will help to lead the fight against this invasive aquatic 

plant that threatens the ecology of lakes and the economy so dependent upon 

their health and beauty. Although milfoil has invaded just one cove of Sebago 

Lake far from campus, our staff helped to write the grant proposal, will 

administer the federal grant, and will be home to the consortium efforts. 

We continue to shape the Strategic Plan and are in the process of finalizing 

it with input from faculty, staff and Board members. The spring issue of the 

magazine will present this dynamic vision of the future in greater detail. 

We congratulate theologian Steve Bridge, who earned a faculty development 

grant to spend two months in Jerusalem next spring following in the 

steps of the Apostle Paul. Professor Bridge hopes to publish a book based 

on his research there and on subsequent trips to Greece and Rome. We also 

congratulate business professor Beth Richardson, who created outstanding 

real-world opportunities for her human resource management students by 

pairing them up with corporations needing research on key corporate issues. 

Also of note in this issue is the story about James Gott ’90, a senior 

product developer at L.L. Bean, who stays extremely busy masterminding 

new looks in the men’s apparel line for the nationally known company. 

I want to let you know how proud we are of our fall sports teams. The 

men’s soccer team won the Great Northeast Athletic Conference Championship, 

our first ever GNAC title. Their trip to the NCAA tournament was the 

first in men’s soccer program history. Our field hockey team was undefeated 

in conference play, and our women’s soccer team made it to the GNAC semifinals. 

All three teams did an outstanding job, and I want to congratulate the 

dedicated players, coaches and parents. 

You will also find an interview with Andrew Wasowski ’11, an Iraq 

veteran who is now a nursing student on campus, thanks in part to the Justin 

Williams Scholarship from the college. Your donations make our scholarships 

possible, so please keep the Annual Fund in your thoughts as the year ends. 

Alumni and other donors help us all to flourish, and as we celebrate the 

accomplishments of the last semester, we celebrate with you as well. 

I wish you a blessed holiday season with many joys. 

Sincerely, 

A Catholic college in the Mercy tradition 

Saint Joseph’s College Magazine is published 

three times a year by the Marketing & 

Public Relations Office at Saint Joseph’s 

College. We welcome your comments, 

correspondence, story ideas and photos. 

Opinions expressed in the magazine 

are those of the authors, not necessarily 

of Saint Joseph’s College. 

EDITOR 

Charmaine Daniels 

DIRECTOR OF MARKETING 

& PUBLIC RELATIONS 

William McCarthy 

PUBLICATIONS DIRECTOR 

Renee LeBrun ’70 

GRAPHIC DESIGNER 

Georgia Brown 

PHOTOGRAPHY 

William McCarthy, 

Director of Photography 

David Bates, Charmaine Daniels, 

Brian DeCandia ’10, Fred Field, 

Susan Johnson, John McKeith, 

Don Perkins, Heather Plati, 

Travis Soule, Steve Walsh ’08 

CLASS NOTES EDITOR 

Kristina Foley Green ’04 

CONTRIBUTORS 

Kristina Green ’04, Susan Johnson, 

Renee LeBrun ’70, Heather Plati, 

Travis Soule, Brent Wooten 

PROOFREADERS 

Sadie Fenton ’10, Susan Johnson, 

Renee LeBrun ’70 

Changes to name, address, 

phone & e-mail: 

alumni@sjcme.edu 

(207) 893-7890 or (877) SJC-ALUM 

To contact editor: 

Charmaine Daniels 

Marketing & Public Relations 

Saint Joseph’s College 

278 Whites Bridge Road 

Standish, Maine 04084 

cdaniels@sjcme.edu 

(207) 893-7723 

www.sjcme.edu/magazine 

Joseph Lee, Ph. D. 

President 

2 S A I N T J O S E P H ’ S C O L L E G E M A G A Z I N E

S O U N D B I T E S 

Thoughts on the new journalism 

Based on a conversation with professor William Yates 

by Charmaine Daniels 

As the mass media fundamentally shift toward 

countless choices and louder voices, something gets lost, 

according to communications professor William Yates. In 

that atmosphere, he says, very important information gets 

treated the same as superficial information. 

“Britney Spears’ medical records take on the 

same weight as national health care reform.” 

There’s a place for traditional journalists, even though 

newspapers haven’t figured out how to make money in 

journalism’s new era. “It will be painful, but they’ll figure 

out how to operate less expensively,” he says. 

“Maybe journalists will be independent contractors.” 

The broad array of television channels and Internet 

news sites creates silos of information. That puts more 

responsibility on the consumer to check multiple sources 

and determine the truth. 

“I’m not sure we have time to do that.” 

According to Yates, when the town crier shouted 

out the news from the street corners in the Middle Ages, 

pockets of gossip were broadcast along with the news. 

By the mid-1800s, communicating news stories passed to 

large daily newspapers that espoused the truth, in part to 

please advertisers and avoid being sued. “We’re now back 

to people-sharing communication,” he says. However, 

we lack the face-to-face controls in place during the town 

crier era. Without that set of controls, there’s not as much 

effort to be civil. When Rush Limbaugh poked fun at 

Michael J. Fox’s tremors (Fox has Parkinson’s disease), 

he crossed the line. 

“We’ve gotten good at talking at each other. 

We’re losing the ability to talk with each other.” 

When television broadcasts consisted entirely of 

programs produced by the top three networks of ABC, 

NBC and CBS, they created a centrist flow of information, 

but civility was not uncommon and profits were 

plentiful. With the rise of cable television in the 1980s, 

competition for advertising dollars stiffened and the 

atmosphere became more combative. 

“Now is the wild west of media – and whoever 

has the biggest shotgun wins. At some point, 

we’ll figure out who is worth listening to.” 

A perfect example of how delivery of the news has 

changed is to consider the tale of Neda, a teenage girl 

killed on the streets of Tehran, Iran, during a prodemocracy 

protest in June. Her shocking death was 

captured on video, and posted to Facebook. 

“The world knew instantly.” 

Communications professor William Yates gets his news 

from six to eight sources per day, which he says is necessary 

for good citizenship. Though he likes a lot of online 

sources, he also still enjoys holding a newspaper in his 

hand. Whatever the source, he points to the journalism 

gold standard of “Get it first, but first get it right.” 

Backpack journalists can now shoot footage and send 

it back to the station or newsroom via laptop. Before 

long the technology will produce a small unit that will 

combine stills, video and audio – making journalism more 

accessible and cheaper. The downside of decentralized 

journalism could be a lack of responsibility. 

“Media law and ethics are more 

important than ever now.” 

The pace of media transformation over the last 10 

years is dizzying compared to the relatively long reign 

of radio and television. 

“I’m envious of those who teach Plato.” 

The media pendulum will shift and “the ranters” will 

collapse under their own weight. 

“There will always be people committed 

to telling stories accurately. You have 

to trust and believe someone.” 

A U T U M N 2 0 0 9 

3

D I S P A T C H E S 

College and consortium 

members receive $500,000 

to battle invasive plant 


T 

he Maine Milfoil Consortium, which includes Saint 

Joseph’s College, recently received $500,000 in federal 

funds to fight an invasive aquatic plant that has infested 

26 Maine lakes, including one cove of Sebago Lake. 

The group, which came together two years ago to address 

variable-leaf milfoil’s threat to Maine lakes, will use the 

money to control the plant in seven “test bed” lakes that 

pose high risk of spread to other waters. 

Variable-leaf milfoil was introduced to the state by 

visiting boaters. The plant can destabilize the fundamental 

ecology of lakes vital to recreational boaters, homeowners, 

businesses and tourists. (The state’s 6,000 lakes generate 

$3.5 billion in direct and indirect spending in Maine each 

year.) The Maine Milfoil Consortium wants to proactively 

contain the milfoil threat before it escalates to attack the 

thousands of other lakes in the state, as it has in neighboring 

New Hampshire and Vermont. 

The funds will support a public-private partnership 

among Saint Joseph’s, Little Sebago Lake Association, 

Maine Congress of Lakes Associations, Lakes Environmental 

Association, and the Maine Volunteer Lake Monitoring 

Program. Elizabeth Schran of the institutional advancement 

office is the college’s representative to the Milfoil Consortium. 

The Consortium’s mission is to focus on prevention, 

research, management, mitigation and eradication of 

milfoil through the application of “best practices.” 

Divers are shown removing variable-leaf milfoil by hand and placing it in suction hoses attached to a boat. The stems can grow as 

thick as crayons, and the populations can get so dense that it is almost impossible to get through in a canoe. In optimal conditions, 

the plant can grow an inch a day. Photos courtesy of Lakes Environmental Association, Carol Doucette & Jacolyn Bailey. 

4 

S A I N T J O S E P H ’ S C O L L E G E M A G A Z I N E

President Joe Lee met with Sen. Susan Collins and community members 

at Little Sebago Lake in the summer of 2008. 

Five varieties of water milfoils are native to Maine and are part of the 

natural lake ecosystem, but non-native variable-leaf milfoil threatens 

the quality of Maine fresh waters. Dense growth of variable-leaf milfoil 

degrades the native habitat of fish and other wildlife, and may also provide 

breeding areas for mosquitoes. It disperses when plant fragments are 

moved around by people, animals and water currents. 

Such practices may include suction harvesting, mats to 

suffocate its growth and hand harvesting, says Jacolyn 

Bailey, the project coordinator. “What is the best practice 

in one lake isn’t necessarily the best practice in another 

lake. This grant will allow us to discover which approaches 

work in which aquatic conditions.” 

“On behalf of the Maine Milfoil 

Consortium, of which Saint 

Joseph’s is proud to be a part, 

I want to thank Sen. Susan 

Collins, Gov. John Baldacci and 

all of our members of Congress 

for supporting this important 

project to contain, and, if 

possible, eradicate milfoil in 

our beautiful Maine lakes.” 

— President Joe Lee 

Bailey is a doctoral student working with Dr. Aram 

J.K. Calhoun at the University of Maine at Orono, one 

of a small group of scientists that is studying the invasive 

plant in Maine. 

A portion of the $500,000 appropriation through the 

Interior and Related Agencies bill passed by Congress 

will fund Bailey’s position, as well as equipment for the 

College’s environmental science labs, and a summer 

internship for a Saint Joseph’s student. The largest part 

of the funds will be awarded competitively to lake associations 

in Maine that represent lakes infested with variableleaf 

milfoil and have robust citizen action to mitigate 

the spread of milfoil. In addition, matching funds will be 

raised for public education campaigns, scientific study of 

milfoil, and the dissemination of “best practices” to all 

lake associations statewide. 

Saint Joseph’s will administer the federal grant and provide 

a home to the consortium, convene workshops, bring 

in speakers, and integrate field studies on milfoil into its 

science programs. 

The proposal for these funds was presented to and supported 

by Gov. John Baldacci, U.S. Senators Susan Collins 

and Olympia Snowe, and U.S. Representatives Michael 

Michaud and Chellie Pingree. Sen. Collins, who is the coauthor 

of the National Aquatic Invasive Species Act and a 

member of the powerful Senate Appropriations Committee, 

took the lead and was instrumental in gaining support for 

the project. 

“Maine’s lakes and ponds are invaluable to our economy 

and environment,” said Sen. Collins. “It is critical 

that we work to stop the spread of invasive species in 

Maine and throughout the nation. I am proud of the 

dedicated efforts of the Maine Milfoil Consortium … 

and I am proud to have successfully secured this important 

federal funding,” she added. 

• www.mainelakes.org/milfoil.htm 

A U T U M N 2 0 0 9 

5


College launches new athletics web site at gomonks.com 

Saint Joseph’s has partnered with PrestoSports to launch a new 

athletics web site at www.gomonks.com. 

The new site, which has a whole new look and format, will allow 

fans, alums and media to quickly find information about the school’s 

teams. Now part of the PrestoSports Network, scores entered into the 

gomonks.com site will immediately update the web site’s schedules, the 

GNAC schedules, and national media sites such as d3football, d3hoops, 

d3soccer, d3baseball and laxmagazine.com. 

Some of the distinctive features on gomonks.com include a headlines 

ticker, calendars, scoreboards, rotating stories, in-depth student-athlete bios 

and more. The site also highlights recreation programs. 

“We are very excited about our partnership with PrestoSports,” 

says Saint Joseph’s athletic director Brian Curtin. “We are looking 

forward to having this new site as one of our strongest ways of 

promoting our student-athletes and our athletics department.” 

College partners with 

Catholic health care 

provider to offer 

online graduate degree 

Saint Joseph’s announces 

an educational 

partnership with Catholic 

Healthcare Partners 

(CHP), a large Catholic 

health organization 

based in Cincinnati, Ohio. Under the 

agreement, employee leaders at CHP are 

eligible to receive tuition discounts while 

taking courses online to earn a Master in 

Health Administration degree with a concentration 

in Catholic Health Leadership. 

The Catholic Healthcare Partners 

organization includes 33 acute care 

hospitals and 13 long-term care centers 

in Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee, Indiana 

and Pennsylvania. It also runs seven 

hospice programs, 10 home health agencies 

and 17 affordable housing facilities. 

The health care and service provider 

employs more than 28,000 people, including 

more than 6,000 medical staff. 

Catholic Healthcare Partners is a 

mission-driven, not-for-profit health system 

charged with extending the “healing 

ministry of Jesus by improving the health 

of our communities with emphasis on 

people who are poor and underserved.” 

Service learning where everyone learns 

Talk about a win-win. With the 

help of a $2,500 grant from the 

Fisher Charitable Foundation, 

education professor Dr. Janice 

Rey created a new servicelearning 

program at a local, 

urban school that does many 

things at once for the benefit 

of all. Using environmental 

education curricula, the program 

promotes science literacy, helps 

prepare Saint Joseph’s education 

majors to work with culturally 

diverse populations and offers 

professional development to teachers at the school. 

At Riverton Elementary School in Portland, Maine, more than two 

dozen education majors are teaching hands-on, investigative activities to 

help 120 students learn about water resources, wildlife, and environmental 

issues. In the process, six of the school’s faculty are learning how to 

use the Project Learning Tree, Project WET and Project Wild curricula. 

The curricula also connect with reading and math, subjects critical to the 

school’s multicultural population where English is often a second language. 

“In a school where literacy is emphasized, our Saint Joseph’s students 

are showing that science can promote literacy in reading, writing, and 

inquiry,” says Rey. 

The grant allows Saint Joseph’s to purchase the curriculum material, 

guaranteeing sustainability of the project annually at this school or other 

sites, and supports the efforts of a student coordinator. 

“This is truly a golden opportunity for sophomores enrolled in a science 

methods course to teach science during the regular school day,” says Rey. 

In this educational partnership, everyone wins, including the planet! 

6 


In the footsteps of Paul 

Biblical scholar will retrace apostle’s path 

by Sadie Fenton ’10 

T 

heology professor Steven 

Bridge received this year’s 

faculty development grant 

of $12,000, which will allow 

him to study abroad for 

weeks at a time over the next 

three years. Next spring, 

Dr. Bridge will go to Jerusalem 

for two months where 

he will begin his research on 

the Apostle Paul. He plans to 

travel through Turkey and 

Greece during his second year, 

and visit Rome during the 

third year. 

After finishing the two 

Dr. Steven Bridge 

books “Getting the Gospels” 

and “Getting the Old Testament,” Bridge hopes 

to complete his series with an installment on the 

Pauline letters. “I’m very excited,” he says. “I’ll be 

in the same towns where Paul stayed and see firsthand 

these places he wrote about.” Bridge wants 

to use his experience to make the Pauline literature 

more accessible to others. 

“The main goal is to understand [Paul’s] writing 

from an historical point of view. I’ll be able to 

put the letters in an historical context… and hopefully 

gain a better understanding and interpretation 

of them,” he says of his research. 

“The main goal is to 

understand [Paul’s] 

writing from an historical 

point of view.” 

Bridge’s aptly named grant proposal, “In the 

Footsteps of Paul,” details his desire to trace the 

movements of the apostle from his early ministry 

in Israel, through his missionary work in Turkey 

and Greece, and then to Rome, the final location of 

his ministry and where he was buried. Bridge will 

visit libraries, churches, and other sites mentioned 

in Paul’s writings to gain insight into the historical, 

cultural, geo-political, socio-economic, literary, 

philosophical and theological contexts that influenced 

the Pauline literature. “There’s actually a 

theater mentioned in many of the letters that is still 

standing,” Bridge mentions. “[This experience] will 

allow me to gain a better grasp of Paul’s mindset 

when he was writing. It’s really pretty cool.” 

Bridge hopes his pilgrimage will open doors 

for future students from Saint Joseph’s College to 

study abroad. By visiting a variety of areas, Bridge 

is determined to build local connections through 

which students can explore the culture and history 

outside of tourismgeared 

programs. He 

also plans to bring his 

experience into the 

classroom. “Through 

such venues as… 

a Pauline Literature 

course… I intend to 

share the fruits of my 

research experiences,” 

Bridge states. 

With the help of 

a colleague, Bridge 

discovered Tantur, 

the Ecumenical Institute 

for Theological 

Studies in Jerusalem. 

Owned by the Catholic 

Church and leased 

to the University of 

Notre Dame, the 

institute welcomed 

him to reside at the 

institute as a visiting 

scholar. 

Dr. Steven Bridge’s latest book 

is “Getting the Old Testament,” 

which examines the importance 

of knowing the original historical, 

literary and cultural context of 

important passages found in the 

Old Testament. 

A U T U M N 2 0 0 9 

7


Tell me a story 

Pajamas welcome as education majors 

conduct bedtime story hour for kids 

by Sadie Fenton ’10 and Charmaine Daniels 

C 

lad in robes and slippers, youngsters from 2 years 

old to 10 years old crowd around the couches in the 

student lounge of Alfond Center. Equipped with blankets 

and teddy bears, the children settle in for the first 

story of the night, “Slippers Goes to School.” 

In the fall of 2008, Danielle Johnson ’10 and 

Emily Cole ’10 revived a program called Bedtime 

Stories to promote children’s literacy. Once a month, 

local children come for an hour and a half of reading 

and crafts in the comfort of their pajamas. 

September’s “Back to School” theme included stories 

with beloved characters such as Arthur, Franklin, 

and Amelia Bedelia. Cole explains that children set 

up a space on the floor or tables and then do a coloring 

activity until everyone has arrived. “It keeps them 

entertained until we get things going,” Cole says. 

After a couple of stories, the kids make a craft with 

beads, glitter, construction paper, and a variety of 

supplies Johnson and Cole make available. A light 

snack is also provided. 

The one in October themed for Halloween entertained 

30 children bedecked in costumes and happy 

to listen to “Magic Pumpkin,” “The Little Old Lady 

Who Wasn’t Afraid of Anything” and “Costume 

Copycat” read aloud. 

When Johnson and Cole heard about a $1,000 

grant Target was offering to promote literacy and 

community involvement, they knew Bedtime Stories 

fit the bill. “We decided it’s at least worth the try,” 

Johnson says of the decision to apply for the grant. 

“Worst case scenario: We don’t get the grant and 

we’ll still have our $10 per month budget.” After they 

learned that they had been awarded the grant, they 

made plans to buy more craft supplies and a book 

for each student who comes to campus for the Read 

Across America event next March. 

Trying to convince kids that reading can be fun, 

the two seniors took on the program to prevent it 

from becoming a lost gem. “Hopefully, somebody will 

want to do it next year,” states Johnson. 

“Popcorn and 

Food,” and “Polar 

Express” round out 

the fall season. Next 

spring’s themes include 

“Multicultural and 

Folk Tales,” “Farms,” 

and “Earth Day and 

Weather.” 

“It’s always a great 

time!” says Cole. 

Danielle Johnson ’10 reads 

“The Magic Pumpkin” 

and Rachel Davies ’10 

shows the pictures at the 

Bedtime Stories program 

just before Halloween. 

The education majors 

were among members 

of Student Education 

Association of Maine who 

presented the reading and 

craft program. 

8 


Getting into game day 

by Sadie Fenton ’10 

Shannon Fitzgerald ’12, conference Defensive Player of the Year 

I 

t’s 1:30 p.m. on game day and with Rascal Flats’ “Fast Cars and 

Freedom” blasting from her iPod, sophomore Shannon Fitzgerald, 

a fullback and midfielder on the women’s soccer team, begins her 

stretches. On this particular fall day the team is undefeated in the 

Great Northeast Athletic Conference and pressure mounts for 

another win. After donning her jersey, shin guards, socks, ankle 

brace, and cleats in that order, Fitzgerald, of Amesbury, Mass., 

finds a quiet space away from the rest of her team. “I always take 

a moment alone,” she says. “I pull myself away from the chaos and 

pray to God to keep myself as well as my teammates injury free.” 

She rejoins the other players and her coach in the Alfond Center 

for a pep talk and overview of game tactics before heading to the 

field. During pre-game warm-ups, as her muscles begin to loosen, 

an electric tension on the field grows as the clock counts down to 

the 3 p.m. start time. 

When she enters the game, Fitzgerald picks one thing to focus on. 

For instance, if she knows the opposing team boasts an extremely 

fast forward, she’ll repeat, “I will not let her beat me!” to herself. 

Another way she prepares is to focus on an admired player. “Before 

we step onto the field, I always think of a professional athlete to 

model from,” she states. Most recently, Fitzgerald concentrated on 

Carla Overbeck, captain of the 1999 Women’s World Cup championship 

team known for her talent and her ability to motivate her team. 

Motivation plays a large role in game preparation, and there’s no 

doubt Fitzgerald is motivated. She had to sit out two years in high 

school because of injury but came back her senior year. “We want to 

win the GNAC championship!” she declares. “Every time we step on 

the field it’s because we simply love the sport, but beyond that we want 

to achieve something as a whole, something bigger than ourselves.” 

The other side of game day 

O 

n game day, women’s soccer coach Michael 

Bolanz ’00 carefully chooses a quote from a 

collection he’s compiled over the years and 

prepares a pep talk for his team. He waits 

patiently while the athletes change and do 

their pre-game workout in the gym before he 

gathers them in the second-floor classroom of 

the Alfond Center. 

“I talk myself through the pep talks beforehand. 

The ones where I wing it don’t end up 

quite as inspirational,” he says, laughing. 

Following the pep talk, he goes over the 

game plan and tactics. He closes with an 

inspirational quote for his players, such as, 

“Attitude: I am convinced that life is 10 percent 

of what happens to me and 90 percent 

how I react to it. And so it is with you.” After 

that, he leads the team to the field for dribbling, 

passing drills and a general warm-up. 

“The one ritual 

thing I always do is 

put my soccer cleats 

on when we get to 

the field,” the coach 

notes. 

Bolanz asks his 

players to prepare 

mentally as well as 

physically. He assigns 

journal entries covering 

topics such as 

“How do you prepare 

yourself for a game” 

Coach Michael Bolanz ’00 

The personal reflections 

help the players examine their motivation 

and goals, preparing them psychologically 

for competition. By considering the players’ 

performance and mental preparation, Bolanz 

chooses starters for each game. “I try to make 

sure the players I put on the field are going to 

give us a strong start that the players on the 

bench can carry on later in the game,” he says 

of his method. 

Following suit with his emphasis on 

personal growth, Coach Bolanz states that, 

“I’d love for [the athletes] to become better 

soccer players, but what I want is for them to 

become better people.” He regards his job as 

an influence on his players’ views off the field 

as well as on it. Of course, they all have their 

eyes on the win at the start of a game. “But 

there’s always a bigger picture,” he concludes. 

A U T U M N 2 0 0 9 

9

Behind the 

scene at L.L. Bean 


J ames Gott ’90 spends a lot of time looking 

at what people wear. He scrutinizes details, like 

a shirt’s back yoke line, the size of a pocket, 

or the length of a placket. As the senior product 

developer for men’s apparel at L.L. Bean, 

he launches new items in a product line that 

changes 20 to 30 percent each year. “I set the 

vision and keep everything in motion,” he says 

of developing new men’s clothing. 

Motion proves an apt description of his fast-paced job guiding 

the work of 15 departments juggling 30 to 40 new or updated 

products over a period up to a year. He and his team work with 

the design team, the fitting team, the creative team, the testing 

team, the merchandising team, and the retail team, just to name a 

few. Months of creating samples takes an intense focus on fabric 

development, including trips to the Far East or Latin America 

to meet with vendors. 

To do his job, he has to know how fabric is made in Portugal 

(where a craftsman still brushes flannel for the shirts by hand), 

how to position a product at the right price, and even how a 

shirt should ultimately be packaged. Throughout the process, 

Gott reports progress to upper management. 

“I’m involved in every step of the way,” he says. 

His favorite part of the job The firefight. That’s when 

department teams bombard him with thorny product questions 

and he has to calmly troubleshoot their concerns. He answers 

all their questions in stride, and takes full accountability for 

how he decides to address an obstacle. 

“It’s when I feel like I’m really contributing to L. L. Bean,” 

he says. 


James Gott ’90 started working at L. L. Bean 19 years ago and is now the senior product developer 

for men’s apparel. He is married to Charlene Spring Gott ’90. They live in Bowdoin, Maine, with their 

12-year-old son, Matthew. 

Gott started out folding clothes, stocking shelves and 

unloading trucks when he arrived at L. L. Bean 19 years 

ago. He had grown up in Topsham, just up the road from 

the Freeport flagship store, where he landed a summer job 

after graduating from Saint Joseph’s. He liked the company, 

decided to stay and moved up quickly, first landing 

a permanent position as an inventory buyer. From there, 

he went on to other progressively responsible positions, 

switching to his current one three years ago. 

“The L.L. Bean customer 

doesn’t want to shout,” Gott 

says. “They don’t want to get 

noticed particularly, but they 

want to look good.” 

It turns out that Gott is fiercely competitive. That 

helps him push his product ideas to the front of the line. 

“You have to sell to your own teams; you have to have 

passion.” If he wasn’t actively pushing “his” products, 

they would get moved aside or put on the back burner. 

“And in the corporate world, you need to have products 

that sell,” he states. 

On top of knowing how to make and debut a new 

product, Gott has to know the Bean customer better than 

anyone else. Who is that customer 

If the clothing isn’t inclined to shout, it shouldn’t 

be boring either, he says. “The balance is in keeping the 

core customer, but also staying relevant.” Gott does that 

by regularly paying close attention to blogs, customer 

reviews and fashion trends. 

Gott claims organization is one key to his success. 

Everything goes onto spreadsheets, so he can track multiple 

product samples and their stages of development. 

He also sets clear expectations up front and stays calm 

in the face of deadlines. 

Knowing the female customer helps, too. 

Though he develops men’s apparel, Gott needs to 

understand the female customer, since women often buy 

for men in their families and may often launder and care 

for the clothes. (He admits, with all his current knowledge 

of fabrics, he had never read a fabric care label until 

he got this job. “Men don’t read labels,” he says.) 

When asked if everyone who works at L.L. Bean 

wears the company’s clothes to work, Gott admits 

employees do tend to live the brand. “It’s easier to 

sell products that you use. In the biz, it’s called ‘wear 

testing,’” he says. 

Proud to be part of a company he says is very dynamic, 

he has embraced its call to an active, outdoor lifestyle. 

He runs 5 or 6 days a week, for a total of 30 miles. “I like 

the solitude, the fitness, the competition (in races).” 

“It keeps me sane,” he says. 

A U T U M N 2 0 0 9 

11

Companies get 

youthful advice. 

Students get taste 

of corporate world. 

by Don Perkins 

Thanks to students majoring in human resource management, 

a local law firm now uses Facebook, an insurance 

company has the ability to “tweet,” and a nearby hospital 

knows what it will take to retain its new crop of Generation 

Y and Z employees. 

The major is a mere two years old, but under the tutelage 

of business professor Beth Richardson, its students 

have already proved their value to local companies. When 

a human resources office lacks the time or staff to research 

pressing issues, they turn to Richardson’s students to 

find answers. 

As a former human resources (HR) executive herself, 

Richardson has forged a rich network of corporate contacts. 

Thanks to those connections, Richardson was able 

to build a unique program that benefits businesses and 

students alike. Even as it provides needed research for 

companies, it prepares students professionally – sometimes 

leading directly to jobs. So far, her students have helped 

eight area companies research a range of issues, including 

recruitment strategies, the Employee Free Choice Act, 

executive compensation and new employee orientation. 

“I’m pleasantly surprised with 

how seriously the students take 

these projects. It’s not just 

another research paper for them. 

The fact that they are doing real 

work is not lost on them…. 

They rise to the occasion.” 

Beth Richardson, 

business professor 

Hiring qualified workers from Asia is a key issue for Fairchild 

Semiconductor, headquartered in South Portland, Maine. Brad 

Bingham ’08 did research to help the company with their visa 

issues for foreign workers. He is shown here with Pat Johnson, 

HR director at Fairchild. 

Jillian Leger ’08, a past student of Richardson’s who 

now works in HR at Mercy Hospital in Portland, Maine, 

sums the program up best. “Those classes weren’t the type 

of classes where you could get an A or a B on a test,” she 

says. “You either did a good job with your projects at the 

company or you didn’t. There’s no fooling around. That 

was my first taste of the corporate world.” 


Business professor Beth Richardson’s commitment 

and energetic style led to a unique partnership 

program that benefits students and businesses. 

No other college in Maine sponsors a corporate 

student learning experience in human resources, 

a fact that impresses the local chapter of the 

Society of Human Resource Management. 

Fairchild Semiconductor, headquartered in South 

Portland, Maine, often hires highly trained engineers from 

Asia, and Saint Joseph’s students helped the company navigate 

the world of immigration and visas. Brad Bingham ’08 

researched Fairchild’s H-1B visa issues. 

“There is currently a cap on the number of immigrants 

allowed to come work in the United States,” says Bingham, 

who in working with the immigration system learned 

about ways to facilitate the hiring of highly skilled foreign 

employees who didn’t need visas. 

Bingham was hired by Fairchild after graduation in the 

training and development section. 

“Brad brought a lot to the table with his visa research,” 

says Pat Johnson, Fairchild’s HR director. “We invited 

our whole HR community to attend his presentation; he 

uncovered things we were not aware of.” 

At Mercy Hospital, a student team is developing 

standards for hospital-college partnerships. Last year, a 

different student team completed a large project on introducing 

younger generations to health care careers. 

“Young people bring in a different perspective and have 

done some very useful things for us,” says Peter Russell, 

Mercy’s HR director. “We want to develop a more in-depth 

partnership with Saint Joseph’s.” 

A group of Richardson’s students developed an internal 

social-networking project for UNUM, a Fortune 500 

insurance company that wanted to connect people who 

work in different departments but have similar interests. 

“People of like-ethnicity and age groups can connect,” 

Richardson says. “The goal is to keep turnover low and to 

keep baby boomers engaged and not necessarily thinking 

about retirement.” 

Kim Wallace ’08 helped to implement those social 

networking applications at UNUM, when she got a job 

there after graduation. The company, headquartered in 

Chattanooga, Tenn., has more than 3,000 employees in 

Maine. One of the applications she helped to launch, 

“Third Thursdays,” brings newly hired college graduates 

together at the company for lunch where they learn more 

about each other and the organization. 

“Different forms of social networking build employee 

engagement,” says Marie Clements, assistant vice president 

of human resource strategies at UNUM, who notes there 

are four generations in today’s workplace for the first 

time in history. “Employee engagement is a very contemporary 

issue for companies; it’s certainly high on our radar 

screen. The work the Saint Joseph’s students helped us 

discover specifically was what Gen Y really looks for in 

an employer. We want to be able to communicate to all 

our employees – and prospective employees – in a way 

that works effectively for them.” 

Wallace has taken up “new media” projects for the 

company – using Twitter and Facebook 

as recruitment tools. Called 

“unumrecruit,” Wallace says the 

company’s Twitter account is helpful 

for visiting college campuses during 

UNUM’s annual fall recruitment 

drive. “Twitter users can easily find 

out where we might be,” says Wallace, 

23. “It actually started as my per- 

(continued on next page) 

Jillian Leger ’08 researched social networking 

for employee retention at UNUM for 

her first real-world experience as a human 

resources management major. She now 

works in the human resources office at 

Mercy Hospital in Portland, Maine. 

A U T U M N 2 0 0 9 

13

Rowena Holden, recruitment manager at 

Woodard & Curran in Portland, Maine, 

explains her work and current needs to 

human resource management students. 

sonal account, but we ultimately decided to make 

it more company-focused.” 

Having new energy and ideas like Wallace’s is 

insightful for managers like Clements, a 30-year HR 

veteran at UNUM. “Using sites like Monster and 

Career Builder for recruitment is how you reach out 

now,” Clements says. “Ten years ago we would have 

used the newspaper. It’s a very different world in terms 

of where you’re placing your message so that it’s seen 

by those you want.” 

Students say they are excited to be immersed in 

corporate culture, a fast-paced world of professional 

multitaskers. The preparation for debuting professionally 

starts in the classroom, where Richardson coaches 

students to avoid using slang such as the often-overused 

“like” or “my bad” during presentations. 

But Richardson notes the maturity displayed when 

students first meet their perspective host companies at 

the beginning of the semester. 

“I’m pleasantly surprised with how seriously 

the students take these projects,” Richardson 

says. “It’s not just another research paper for 

them. The fact that they are doing real work is 

not lost on them. They take it seriously; they 

rise to the occasion.” 

Andrew Paladino ’09 had to rise to the 

task one day during his student work with the 

environmental engineering firm of Woodard & 

Curran in nearby Portland. He found himself 

giving two presentations in one day. One report 

deciphered the payback benefits of a wellness program 

for the company, while the other was how best to deliver 

HR services to its 50-odd satellite offices. The company 

kept him on after he graduated. 

“Once they realized what I could do, they’ve been 

putting more and more on me,” Paladino says. 

All signs point to HR as a corporate priority in 

the future – as health care issues change rapidly, recruitment 

becomes evermore technological, legal matters 

grow more complex in the post-Enron era and the 

baby boomer exodus accelerates. “With baby boomers 

hitting retirement age, the possibility of losing a lot 

of talent very quickly is real for many companies,” 

says Richardson. 

“It’s special to have students who are interested in 

human resources,” says Rowena Holden, recruitment 

manager at Woodard & Curran. “St. Joe’s appealed 

to us largely because Beth (Richardson) is such an 

incredible mentor to her students. She brings the 

world of HR alive. She isn’t afraid to push 

her students. The quality of those students is 

fantastic; they do a great job.” 

Richardson says introducing students to a 

workplace is the most powerful lesson she can 

teach. “It readies them for a career, jumpstarts 

their maturity and forms a connection between 

the classroom and the rest of their professional 

lives,” she says. “For the college, it showcases 

the quality of our students and the practicality 

of the education they receive here.” 

Andrew Palladino ’09, shown here with professor 

Beth Richardson, was in the first graduating 

class of human resource management majors. 

He works at Woodard & Curran, where he initially 

worked on the payback benefits of a wellness 

program and how to deliver HR services to satellite 

offices of the engineering and environmental 

services firm. More males are now joining the 

ranks of human resource professionals. 


Talk 

with Andrew Wasowski ’11 


What was your biggest challenge in Iraq 

Maintaining hope … that I would survive it and come 

home. Every day you wake up and wonder if this is the 

day you’ll die. You try not to succumb to despair. You 

re-evaluate everything in your life with those situations. 

Andrew Wasowski ’11 of Windham, Maine, was recruited 

by the Marine Corps in high school. At age 18, he found 

himself in boot camp, which was followed by three tours 

in Iraq, where he spent nearly 28 months. He is now a 

junior nursing student on campus. 

What did you do in Iraq 

Intelligence. It was my job to be an expert on the enemy 

and pass that information on to the Marines of my unit. 

We’d take information and analyze it. I was on the computer 

a lot and gave a lot of Power Point briefs. Later, I 

was on loan to Special Forces. 

How did the Marine Corps change you 

I was a completely different person. I was voted most 

friendly in high school. I was very social, and I was concerned 

with what people thought of me. Now I’m a little 

rough around the edges. I’m more direct, and extremely 

frank. I say what I mean, and I mean what I say. 

What skills that you learned in the military helped here 

Discipline and initiative… I try to be proactive. I ask a lot 

of questions in class and go to open labs for help. 

What made the deepest impression on you while in Iraq 

Mortality; how fragile we are and how much I value life. 

Was your life ever in danger 

Yes. I got my combat action ribbon. The Fallujah offensive 

was very intense. 

What’s it like being back 

Culture shock. I don’t have the mindset of the younger 

students. I value things on a more primal level. Like tonight 

I can sleep in a bed. I can take a shower, go to the 

store, check my e-mail. I’m very thankful for these things. 

What’s your biggest challenge as a nursing student 

Besides being a guy (laughing) It’s such a different way 

of daily life. Guys don’t talk about feelings. Guys don’t 

say, “I’m having a fat day.” I’ve seen some of the world, 

and I think that I have a different perspective than most 

students. I felt isolated at first, but I’ve made friends now 

and I love being part of the program. 

You left the Marine Corps six months early. How did that 

happen 

I was unhappy toward the end. I knew I wasn’t in control 

of my life. I started to put my education package together 

and was granted an early release by the Secretary of the 

Navy for early dismissal because of the Saint Joseph’s 

scholarship. I was the only one out of 900 applicants to 

be allowed out early in 2007. 

What planted the seed to become a nurse 

I met a medic on my last tour. He was doing blitzkrieg 

medicine, everything from STDs to major field surgery. I 

offered to help him. He loaned me anatomy books, taught 

me how to put in IVs on my foot and do sutures on a 

piece of fruit. From there I realized that I have a love 

of science and medicine, and I decided I’d get more time 

with patients in nursing. 

A U T U M N 2 0 0 9 

15

Teaching from a distance, 

these online professors find 

ways to draw students closer 

By tuning in, reaching out and sharing their own experiences, 

these four teachers make a strong connection with distance learners 

by Betty Lynne Leary 

B arbara Plungis will do just about anything for her online 

students, which recently meant finding an Internet-accessible 

vacation spot in the wilds of North Dakota for her husband’s 

duck hunting trip this fall. 

“I don’t shoot anything, but I wear the fatigues and 

orange vest,” Plungis describes. “And I still answer e-mails 

and return assignments on time. I love this job!” 

Her students return the affection. 

“Barbara has a warm, personal touch that was totally 

unexpected,” says Greg Lippert, a hospital administrator 

from Mt. Shasta, Calif., who is working on his bachelor’s 

degree. “One would expect distance learning to be a rather … 

prescribed way to learn, but not with Barbara. She imparts 

criticism in a non-demeaning manner and always infuses 

some humor, which is so refreshing.” 

Plungis, a health care administration professor, knows all 

too well the schedule her students keep. She worked full time 

as a nurse while earning both her bachelor’s in professional 

arts (1984) and master’s degree in health care administration 

“When someone tells me they’re 

scared to earn this degree, I tell 

them ‘I’ve been there and done it 

and so can you.’” 

– Barbara Plungis ’84,’97, 

health administration professor 

(1997) through Saint Joseph’s distance education program. 

According to her students, many of whom are active-duty 

military, Plungis has a special knack for connecting with 

them immediately. 

A true nurse at heart, Plungis loves helping people. She 

strives to answer e-mail and grade assignments quickly. She’s 

also willing to lend an understanding ear when life throws 

obstacles in a student’s path. 

Janet Douglass has taught distance 

learners at Saint Joseph’s College 

since 1985. “I love to hear their stories. 

I can relate to what they’re going through, 

because I’ve been there,” she says. 


“I’m here for them no matter what. We have lots of 

shared experiences …,” Plungis relates. “When someone 

tells me they’re scared to earn this degree, I tell them ‘I’ve 

been there and done it and so can you.’” 

When Kimberly Elzey of East New Market, Md., began 

working toward her radiology administration degree last 

May, it was her first college course in 13 years. 

“I was a little apprehensive,” she says. “Barbara’s 

friendly and caring way made me more relaxed and allowed 

me to overcome my fear.” Another first-year student, 

Daryl Barta of Georgetown, Mass., describes Plungis as 

“extremely available,” which helped greatly during her 

first online course. 

“I knew I could always reach her and that was comforting,” 

Barta explains, adding that Plungis “directs you on the 

path you need to follow in order to be successful.” 

Plungis feels a special closeness with her students serving 

in the military. According to David McCall, a Saint Joseph’s 

academic advisor, there are hundreds of active-duty personnel 

working on degrees through Saint Joseph’s program. 

“Barbara has a great deal of empathy for our military 

students,” McCall explains. “She understands that they 

are balancing their studies with a commitment not only to 

their country, but to their families as well.” In addition to 

ongoing reading, assignments, and exams, military students 

often cope with very limited access to computers and the 

Internet while deployed. 

“I certainly give them credit for trying to continue their 

education under the most extreme conditions,” Plungis says. 

A 

lthough longtime nursing professor Janet 

Douglass rarely meets her students, she connects 

with them by finding common ground. 

“I listen to them and try to find out more about 

them,” Douglass notes. “With this population, 

you always have something in common. I find I’m 

more connected to my online students than those 

in a traditional classroom. E-mail helps establish a 

one-on-one relationship. It’s personal.” 

She enjoys the mid-career, graduate students 

that populate her online learning community. 

“These students can apply everything you 

teach them right away, and that’s just a delight,” 

Douglass explains. 

Laurence Topliffe, a practicing clinical educator 

at Shriners Burn Hospital in Boston, has taken 

seven online courses from Saint Joseph’s and is 

close to finishing his MSN in nursing education. 

He notes that his most challenging and productive 

course was Nursing Research with Dr. Douglass. 

Topliffe describes Douglass as “a wonderful role model for 

professionalism and academic discipline.” 

“She can put herself into the shoes of an average nurse 

and bring abstract concepts into reality,” he explains. “She 

helps you work through your own mental barriers because 

we all have them, but we often don’t know what they are or 

how to deal with them.” 

“I only teach courses I truly love. I’m 

engaged in the content, and I try to 

get them to love it as much as I do.” 

Douglass transfers not only her clinical knowledge 

of nursing to her students, but also her passion for 

the profession. 

“I only teach courses I truly love,” she says. “I’m really 

engaged in the content, and I try to get them to love it as 

much as I do.” Her enthusiasm is infectious, and students 

are drawn to the classes she teaches. 

“I love to hear their stories,” Douglass notes. “I can relate 

to what they’re going through, because I’ve been there.” 

Vicky Ladd of Ayer, Mass., who is completing her 

MSN this fall, says Douglass forms a personal connection. 

“She has actually called me, not just e-mailed, to check on 

how I was doing. That’s not what you expect in a distance 

learning class.” 

“I’m here for 

them no matter 

what,” says alumna 

Barbara Plungis ’84,’97 

of her students. 

– Janet Douglass, 

nursing professor 

A U T U M N 2 0 0 9 

17

W H E N Y O U ’ R E N O T I N A C L A S S R O O M 

Because online students don’t see their instructor or fellow 

students face-to-face, teaching with a personal touch can help 

them feel connected and part of a “classroom community.” 

Ann Cohen, who teaches Educational Leadership in 

the Master in Education program, sends out personalized 

welcome letters to new students. She deliberately uses a 

conversational tone and invites them to ask questions. 

Throughout the course as she responds to their homework, 

she also tries to call them weekly, shares her own teaching 

and leadership experiences in e-mails, posts favorite quotes, 

poetry and book recommendations, and even sends online 

greeting cards with encouraging messages. This is in addition 

to weekly online chat sessions and responding in a timely 

manner to their assignments. 

T 

eaching online posed an intriguing challenge for John 

Munroe, a theology professor. 

“I had no idea how to even turn on a computer,” he 

says laughing. “But the St. Joe’s technology people were 

very gracious and taught me everything.” 

Munroe’s meticulous nature made him a natural for 

distance education. 

“What makes John successful is the detail in which 

he works,” says David Dziena, a 2005 graduate with a 

master’s in pastoral theology. “He describes in detail what 

he likes about your work, and when you need improvement, 

he is very encouraging. He puts everything into a 

positive light.” 

A self-described easy-going sort, Munroe strives to be 

open with his students and share with them his 73 years 

of life experiences. 

Laurie Spaltro, a project coordinator for course design at 

Saint Joseph’s who earned her degree online, says students 

are very relieved to get support. “Promptness and willingness 

to respond really lessens that isolated feeling,” she says. 

Spaltro says Barbara Plungis manages to infuse her personality 

into e-mails through simply using a smile icon or adding 

audio pieces so that students can hear the inflections in her 

voice. Plungis and the other professors highlighted in the adjacent 

article have been course designers, which Spaltro says 

leads to a deep understanding of what students need to be engaged. 

“They bring that into the online classroom,” she says. 

Overall, Cohen says she tries to be both professional 

and personal, using a reassuring tone and developing a 

connection with her students. “I try to be human … all the 

while showing each student that I care.” 

“There must be a relationship established for learning 

to take place,” Munroe explains. “Students get a lot of help 

by learning my life story in bits and pieces. I’m not smarter 

than them; I’ve just been around longer.” 

“There must be a relationship 

established for learning to take place.” 

– John Munroe, 

online theology professor 

That personal approach to learning attracted Dziena 

to several of Munroe’s classes. 

“He brings the material to life by making it personal,” 

Dziena says. “He takes a mentoring approach that really 

breaks down the guard of the typical professor/student 

relationship.” 

Another recent alumna, Marian O’Brien ’09, found 

a kindred soul in Munroe’s attention to detail. “His 

knowledge of the subject matter is fantastic, and he will 

do anything to make your learning experience as fulfilling 

as possible,” she says. 

John Munroe takes a mentoring 

approach when it comes to teaching 

his distance students. “That really 

breaks down the guard of the 

typical professor/student 

relationship,” one of his 

students says 


Judy Michaud ’07 appreciates that Munroe always 

respects his students’ opinions even if he might not agree 

with them. 

“John’s very relaxed about his teaching. He’s not 

puffed up about being a professor,” Michaud says. 

“His openness and informality provide a very nurturing 

atmosphere for learning.” 

C 

reating a class where students feel part of an active 

learning community is one of the greatest challenges in 

distance education. Michele Hinton-Riley, a Saint Joseph’s 

professor who designs and teaches American history classes 

online, has been researching that issue since she began 

teaching online in 2005. 

“The challenge is in building community and helping 

students not feel isolated,” Riley explains. “You have 

to help them realize that they’re not out there trying to 

master this course material alone.” Riley will be presenting 

a paper she co-authored titled “Building Virtual Bridges; 

Utilizing Technology to Promote an Online Learning 

Community” this month at a conference in Rome. 

One of her students, Atlanta resident Diana Potts, 

feels very comfortable interacting on e-mail. “In fact, I 

might share information about myself in an e-mail that I 

may hesitate to share in a classroom,” she admits. “I also 

like having the opportunity to share personal perspectives 

on the discussion boards.” 

Nancy Smith, who has been taking online courses 

for two years from her home in Assonet, Mass., enjoys 

Riley’s enthusiasm. 

“Michele has so much passion for U.S. history and for 

her students,” Smith says. “She shares stories that add to 

the student’s insights, showing her love for the history of 

our country. By the time I finished her course, I felt I had 

made a friend.” 

Kathleen Lawrence, a nursing student from Derry, 

N.H., says that her online professors really do form a connection 

with students by sharing about themselves as well 

as their knowledge of the subject. After a hectic summer in 

which she began to fall behind in Riley’s course, Lawrence 

relates that Riley e-mailed her some encouraging words. 

“She e-mailed my grade to me with the comment to 

‘hang in there and hopefully the fall will bring some peace,’” 

Lawrence relates. “I really appreciated her sincerity and 

her concern for me.” 

Michele Hinton-Riley understands that 

many of her history students face the 

demands of full-time jobs, families and 

life’s unexpected detours. Her empathy 

stems from her own experience as a 

military wife who finished her graduate 

degree while her husband was at war. 

Riley, like most online professors, understands the 

demands that many students face, including full-time jobs, 

families, and life’s unexpected detours. 

“I’ve learned a lot from my students and how they 

juggle their lives,” Riley notes. “I know how passionate 

they are to finish that degree and how many sacrifices they 

make.” Her empathy stems from her own experience as a 

military wife who finished her graduate degree while her 

husband was at war. 

“I was an adult when I went back to school, too,” 

Riley says, “so I can sympathize with anyone trying to 

earn a degree, raise children, and work full time. “Every 

student has an opportunity to learn. I’m there to help and 

support them.” 

Michele Hinton-Riley lives in Florida 

but reaches out to her students across 

the country to make them feel part 

of an active learning community. 

A U T U M N 2 0 0 9 

19

A L U M N I N E W S 

HOMECOMING 

Homecoming/Family Weekend 2009 brought more than 230 alumni and their family members back to campus to enjoy the 

festivities of the annual alumni games in baseball, field hockey, soccer, softball, volleyball and the Runnin’ Monks 5K. The 

weekend offered something for everyone: family activities off and on campus; morning receptions celebrating our legacy alumni, 

alumni-athletes, and parents of current students; an afternoon tour on the Songo River Queen and an evening in the Old Port. 

1 

2 

3 

4 5 

golf 

The 19th Saint Joseph’s College Golf Classic kicked off the Homecoming/Family weekend when 127 golfers converged on the 

links at Spring Meadows in Gray in September. Alumni, friends, family and college coaches competed for winners’ bragging rights 

and in-tournament contests. Thirty-three teams filled the course to show their support for the Royal Blue Club, the tournament 

beneficiary. The day finished with a cocktail reception, buffet dinner, awards ceremony and raffle at Spring Meadows, followed 

by a 19th Hole party in The Chalet on campus. 

1. The 2009 winning team. (left to right): Peter Griffin ’88, Marc Catalano ’91, Duane Coute ’91 2. (left to right) Ron Kew ’88, 

Erik Johnson ’89, Jeff Johnson, and Paul Butler ’88 on the course at Spring Meadows. 3. The players warmed up at the driving range 

sponsored by Warren Construction Group before the 1 p.m. shotgun start. 4. Chris Willer ’04, Travis Seaver ’03, C.J. Vose ’03 and 

Phil Sharp 5. Joe Lysiak ’95 (left), Sheri McCarthy Piers ’93 and Pete McNally ’95 caught up after the tournament at the awards banquet 

in the Spring Meadows banquet center. 


aseball 

1. Baseball alumni made a great showing at this year’s alumni baseball game and filled the field with former 

players for a fun afternoon game on the Larry Mahaney diamond. 2. Board of Trustee member Sr. Dale Jarvis ’77 

threw out the honorary first pitch of the game. 3. The black-shirted alumni team discusses its strategy against 

the blue-shirted alumni team – what a great match-up! 

field hockey 

2 3 4 

5 

4. Alumna Emily Mathieson ’09 takes control of the field! 5. Coach Rupert Lewis with his alumnae team on the 

field before their annual field hockey game. 

royal blue club brunch 

6. College baseball coach Will Sanborn ’86 and assistant baseball coach Nick Mirabello ’03 chat during Saturday 

morning’s Royal Blue Club brunch, an on-campus celebration of alumni-athletes and student-athletes. 

1 

6 

HOMECOMING 2009 

A U T U M N 2 0 0 9 

21


volleyball 

1. Volleyball alumnae came back to campus and played in their own alumnae vs. alumnae game in the Alfond Center gymnasium. 

2. The alumnae game, where current volleyball team members helped by scoring and judging the game before playing in their own 

tri-match Saturday afternoon. 

1 2 

4 

3 

5 

runnin’ monks 5K challenge 

3. Jeremy Allen ’10 gives the “First Place Male” award to Ryan Prescott ’09, the first-place finisher of the race. 4. Coach Tom Dann 

instructs alumni and the current SJC cross country team on the path of the course for the chilly morning start on campus. 

5. Cross country alumni had a great showing in the annual SJC Runnin’ Monks 5K Challenge on Saturday morning. 


softball 

1. Alumna Dee Regan ’04 pitched a serious game during the alumnae vs. students softball game on Saturday afternoon. 

2. The full 2009 alumnae softball team at the Ward Park field on campus. 3. Laura Davis Drown ’99 and 

Heather Skolfield ’00 look on as Coach Jamie Smyth ’92 gives a pep talk to both teams; alumnae in blue and 

students in black. 

alumni soccer 

4. Alumni filled the field at the annual co-ed soccer game on Saturday afternoon. 

traditional new england dinner 

songo river queen trip 

1 

3 4 

5 6 

5. Alumni, students and their families ended the day on campus with a community dinner overlooking Sebago. 

Kara Squillante ’09 and Billy Creed ’10 enjoyed their lobster feed. 

6. Alumni and their families, along with current students and their family members, enjoyed a tour of 

Long Lake aboard the Songo River Queen on Saturday. 

2 

A U T U M N 2 0 0 9 

HOMECOMING 2009 

23


legacy brunch 

1. (left to right): Debbie Prescott Crocker ’86, Joe Crocker ’10 and Jeff Crocker ’86 enjoyed the brunch in Xavier Lounge on Saturday 

morning. 2. (left to right): President Joe Lee, Max Freeman ’78, Mike McDevitt ’83, Margaret O’Brion McDevitt ’82, and their children 

Matt McDevitt and Megan McDevitt ’12. 3. Alumna Linda Leighton Bois ’85 (center left) with husband Paul Bois and their children, 

Kevin Bois and Kathryn Bois ’13. 4. (left to right): Alumni family of Scott Walker ’07, Anna Walker ’03, Kathy Hamel Walker ’75 

and Jim Walker ’74. 

1 2 

3 4 

5 6 

homecoming celebration 

5. (left to right): Joel Wezowicz ’98, Cory Abbott ’99 and Mike Crockett ’02 at Saturday’s Homecoming celebration at Gritty McDuff’s 

in Portland. 6. (left to right): Monica Chenard ’09, Iris Guimond ’09 and Michalah Nickerson ’09 at their first alumni event at Gritty’s. 

24 


Save the Date 

Alumni Weekend 2010 

June 4 - 6 

A weekend campus celebration for all alumni. 

Make plans to come back to the lake to reminisce and reunite. 

Have fun remembering your days at SJC and those you shared them with. 

We will be honoring class years that end in 5’s and 0’s, 

but all are welcome for this annual event. 

For more details, check The ROCK in January: http://therock.sjcme.edu 

Are you in a reunion year Make sure to update your contact info with the alumni office, 

and be on the lookout for news from your class agent on plans. 

• Update by phone: 207-893-7890 or 877-SJC-ALUM 

• Update by e-mail: alumni@sjcme.edu 

• Update online: http://therock.sjcme.edu/alumniupdate 

Online student survey points 

to high level of satisfaction 

More than 1,200 students responded to a survey from the 

Graduate & Professional Studies division. The data will improve 

understanding of student needs and overall marketing 

efforts. Participants were eligible for L.L. Bean gift cards. 

Survey Results 

• 63% pursue their education to advance their career. Only 

11% said they continue their education to change careers. 

• 90% gave top ratings for their overall educational experience, 

and a corresponding percentage (95%) said they would 

recommend Saint Joseph’s to a friend or work colleague. 

• The top three factors in selecting Saint Joseph’s College were 

related to the flexibility of course scheduling and online 

availability. Nearly all respondents (96%) indicated “The ability 

to manage coursework within my individual schedule” 

was important, while nine in ten said “Rolling admission 

dates and monthly start dates” (89%) or “Completing my program 

without visiting campus” (87%) was important. Only 

about two in five (37%) said they had ever taken courses 

at Saint Joseph’s during its annual summer program. 

The breakdown of participants by program and geography 

closely matched the distribution of the student population. 

Keep in Touch 

You open this magazine three times a year. 

How about a monthly news update 

Update your e-mail address with the 

alumni office and we will add you to the 

monthly e-newsletter list. News includes 

class notes, alumni event information and 

event photographs, alumni updates, message 

board posts, job postings and campus news. 

Send us an update: 

By e-mail at alumni@sjcme.edu 

By phone at 207-893-7890 or 877-SJC-ALUM 

By submitting online at 

http://therock.sjcme.edu/alumniupdate 

We’d love to hear from you. 

A U T U M N 2 0 0 9 25


New Hampshire 

alumni night 

In August, alumni from across New Hampshire shared 

an evening of fun and socializing in Portsmouth at 

The Portsmouth Brewing Company. This second 

alumni gathering in The Granite State was a hit! 

(L-R) Tom Siemasko ’87, Susan Santry Buckin, 

Laurie Flynn ’88 and Steve Theriault ’88 catch 

up at The Portsmouth Brewery. 

Tammy Kerrigan Scarponi ’94 and husband 

Phil in the private room for the alumni social. 

Alumni Red Sox game 

The alumni Red Sox game was a great time again this 

year! We started the event with a reception at Copperfield’s 

near Fenway, and then continued the enthusiasm 

all the way to our seats. 

Steve Russell ’87 and Col. Timothy Bailey ’84 

reminisce about good times on campus. 

Beth Egan Mallett ’94 with son Jack at Fenway 

for the alumni game. 

Deb Penta Lindholm ’94, Angela Gagne Palmer ’94, 

Kimberly Davis Scholtz ’94 and Alex Baum Frazier ’94 

at the pre-game reception. 

Steven Palleschi ’06 (far left) with Kerry 

Racette ’07, Sarah Galanif Palleschi ’05, 

Nick Mirabello ’03 and J.P. Palleschi ’05 

catch up before the Red Sox game. 

26 


C L A S S N O T E S 

60s 

Christina Joyce ’68 of San 

Francisco, Calif., and many 

of her classmates got together 

in July on Cabbage Island, 

Maine, and in nearby 

Boothbay Harbor, Maine. 

Some members of the class 

of 1968 who gathered on 

Cabbage Island are, standing, 

left to right: Mary Girard 

Noonan, Donna Delisle 

Carbonneau, Martha Coury 

Patterson; seated: Nancy 

Fournier Barnes. 

80s 

Frances Thompson ’82 of 

Severn, Md., has retired 

completely from part-time 

work with the Anne Arundel 

County, Md., School Health 

Services, where she was a 

substitute school nurse. 

Col. Timothy Bailey ’84 and 

Julie Ford Bailey ’88 (above) of 

Hampton, N.H., active alumni, 

are happy that daughter 

Lauren is a student at Saint 

Joseph’s, class of 2013. 

90s 

Carolyn Teragawa ’91 recently 

published a memoir, “The Silent 

Generation: A Love Story” with 

RoseDog Books. According to 

the book’s summary: “My book 

is the story of my life lived in 

a unique way and yet with 

many of the same values and 

experiences shared by others of 

my generation. A country girl 

becomes a professional nurse in 

the city and raises a multiracial 

family. This book also shares 

some history of previous generations 

of our family and 

their impact on us. The gift of 

sharing our stories in writing is 

for our children, grandchildren, 

and others who may see 

themselves in my story.” The 

memoir is available online at 

Borders.com. Carolyn resides 

in Dent, Minn. 

Catherine Collins ’93 of Lake 

Ariel, Pa., was named lecturer 

in the nursing department 

at University of Scranton in 

Scranton, Pa. She most recently 

served as a clinical instructor 

there. She also works at 

Wayne Memorial Hospital as 

an emergency department staff 

nurse. Catherine earned two 

bachelor’s degrees – professional 

arts and health care 

administration – as well as 

her master’s degree in nursing 

at Saint Joseph’s. 

Sheri McCarthy Piers ’93 of 

Falmouth, Maine, broke the 

Maine course record for women 

with a finishing time of 34:17 

in the TD Banknorth Beach 

to Beacon 10K race. Sheri’s 

time made her the top Maine 

women’s finisher in her age 

class and brought her into the 

top 10 finishers in the run. 

Stacy Laflin ’96 of Winterport, 

Maine, has been promoted to 

United States Probation Officer 

in August. 

James Pelletier ’99 of Augusta, 

Maine, was promoted to Social 

Services Program Specialist II 

with the Maine Department of 

Health & Human Services in 

Augusta. In this capacity, James 

serves as the ICPC Deputy 

Compact Administrator and 

also the Levels of Care Program 

Manager. 

Bonnie Davis Kenaley ’99 

of Garden City, Idaho, was 

appointed assistant professor 

in the School of Social Work at 

Boise State University. Bonnie 

earned her master’s degree 

in 2001 and her doctorate 

in 2007 at the University at 

Albany, State University of 

New York. 

Patty McGrath Abrahams ’95 

of Rancho Santa Margarita, 

Calif., teaches at Saint Anne 

School in Santa Ana. During 

her school’s Spirit Week, 

teachers promoted different 

colleges around the country. 

Patty made Saint Joseph’s 

Monks T-shirts – she ironed 

on 27 Monks logos – and 

pennants for all of her 2ndgraders 

(see below). She also 

gave a presentation about Saint 

Joseph’s with images of the 

lake and a virtual tour. Patty 

says many of the students went 

home to tell their parents that 

they wanted to go to college 

at the lake in Maine. Patty 

is working on her M.S. in 

Education online with Saint 

Joseph’s. She serves on Saint 

Anne’s school board and is a 

First Communion teacher. 

Patty McGrath Abrahams ’95, 

and her 2nd grade class (below). 

A U T U M N 220 009 

9 27


00s 

Robert Summers ’02 (above) of 

Reno, Nev., earned his Ph.D. in 

business administration from 

Kennedy-Western University in 

Cheyenne, Wyo., in August. 

Ericka Prefontaine Sanborn 

’02 (above) has been named 

director of admissions and 

marketing at Catherine 

McAuley High School in 

Portland, Maine. Ericka was 

previously a member of the 

school’s English department 

faculty and most recently held 

the position of coordinator 

of communications and 

alumnae relations. Ericka 

lives in Standish, Maine, with 

husband Patrick Sanborn ’04. 

Hillary Collyer ’04 of 

Riverside, R. I., recently earned 

her master’s degree in nursing 

from Simmons College in 

Boston, Mass., and passed the 

national certification exams 

to become a certified nurse 

practitioner. Hillary has been 

a hematology-oncology nurse 

at Hasbro Children’s Hospital 

in Providence for five years 

and has accepted the position 

of pediatric surgical nurse 

practitioner on the pediatric 

surgical team at Hasbro. 

Kim Clement ’05 (above) of 

Windham, Maine, has joined 

the Saint Joseph’s faculty as an 

assistant professor of nursing. 

Kim earned a master’s degree in 

nursing and a master’s degree in 

business administration from the 

University of Southern Maine. 

She is certified in medical surgical 

nursing by The Academy of 

Medical-Surgical Nurses. She is 

the editor-in-chief of The Maine 

Link, the quarterly newsletter of 

The Maine Hospice Council and 

Center for End of Life Care. She 

teaches health assessment and 

nursing foundations on campus. 

After the 

St. Joe’s Monks 

won the GNAC 

conference title 

in men’s soccer, 

assistant coach 

Jeff Yeager ’03 

hugs goalkeeper 

Will Pike ’10 as 

son Lucas looks 

on...dreaming 

of becoming a 

soccer star, too. 

Meredith Kendall ’05 (above) 

of Farmington, Maine, has 

recently published the book 

“Reiki Nurse: My Life as 

a Nurse and How Reiki 

Changed It.” Meredith is a reiki 

practitioner at The Dempsey 

Center in Lewiston, Maine, 

and teaches nursing at the 

Central Maine Medical Center 

College of Nursing and Health 

Professionals. 

Richard Anderson ’07 of 

Wautoma, Wis., has accepted 

the position of Service & 

Health Division Associate Dean 

at Mid-State Technical College 

in Grand Rapids, Mich., where 

he will manage educational 

activities related to emergency 

medical services throughout the 

district. Rick has also earned 

a master’s degree in disaster 

medicine and management 

from Philadelphia University. 

Stephanie Cote ’07 of Portland, 

Maine, has been selected to 

receive the 2009 Celebrating 

Excellence in Caregiving Award 

from the Maine Health Care 

Association for, among other 

qualities, her outstanding direct 

caregiving and extraordinary 

level of resident care and 

attention to resident rights. 

Stephanie is one of 10 

caregivers in Maine to receive 

the award and the only RN. She 

received the award at a special 

luncheon during the Maine 

Health Care Association’s 

annual fall conference. She is a 

nurse at St. Andre Health Care 

Facility in Biddeford, Maine. 

Cynthia Powers ’08 of 

Memphis, Tenn., enrolled in 

the Doctor of Nursing Practice 

executive leadership program 

at Union University, Jackson, 

Tenn., in August. 

Brad Morin ’06 entered St. 

Mary’s Seminary in Baltimore, 

Md., in August. He writes 

that his hope is to become a 

Diocesan priest for the Diocese 

of Portland. Brad is from Saint 

David, Maine. 

Brian Schools ’08, Manchester, 

N.H., is assistant turf manager 

for the Manchester Fisher Cats, 

the AA affiliate of the Toronto 

Blue Jays. The Fisher Cats’ 

baseball field has been named 

by the Pioneer® Athletics 2008 

Field of Excellence® as the top 

field among all New England 

professional teams, colleges, 

universities, high schools and 

park & recreation departments. 

Sister Mary Norberta ’09 

(Honorary Doctorate) of 

Bangor, Maine, was named 

by the Maine Business and 

Professional Women organization 

for her work as leader of 

the St. Joseph Hospital and 

St. Joseph Healthcare Foundation 

in Bangor since 1982. 

Sr. Norberta is president and 

CEO at St. Joseph Hospital. 



Alumna authors book about midwife experiences – and more 

Nurse-midwife Patricia 

Harman ’83 manages a 

women’s health clinic in West 

Virginia with her husband, 

Tom, a gynecologist. Theirs 

is a medical practice where 

patients open their hearts, 

where they find care and 

sometimes refuge from lives 

that are often heartbreaking. 

Patricia’s new book titled The 

Blue Cotton Gown tells both 

the tales of these women and 

her own story of keeping a 

small medical practice solvent 

and coping with personal 

challenges. 

Published by Beacon 

Press in Boston, her memoir 

addresses contemporary 

concerns such as drug abuse, 

menopause, mother-guilt, 

infertility, domestic violence, 

teen pregnancy, transgender 

change, midlife sexuality, 

keeping a marriage together 

and the crisis in the U.S. health 

care system. 

When interviewed, Patricia 

said, “Getting my B.S. in 

Health Care Administration in 

the low-residency program at 

Saint Joseph’s was pivotal for 

me. Without it, my husband 

and I would never have had the 

courage to leave the university 

Ob/Gyn faculty practice and 

go out on our own.” 

Patricia has published 

in The Journal ofMidwifery 

& Women’s Health and The 

Journal of Sigma Theta Tau for 

Nursing Scholarship as well as 

alternative publications. She is 

a regular presenterat national 

midwifery conferences. She has 

served on the faculty of Ohio 

State University, Case Western 

Reserve University, and West 

Virginia University. She lives 

and works near Morgantown, 

W.V., and has three sons. 

The Blue Cotton Gown 

is a book about women who 

are struggling, but is also 

“a celebration of healing and 

a tribute to all health care 

professionals who struggle 

to survive with their souls 

intact.” Now out in paperback, 

it is available on www.amazon. 

com and in most major 

bookstores. The book makes 

an excellent discussion tool for 

students. For more information, 

go to www.patriciaharman. 

St. Joe’s stalwarts named to New England Basketball Hall of Fame 

Standout women’s basketball 

player Neile Joler Nelson ’95 

was inducted into the New 

England Basketball Hall of 

Fame on October 9, and Linda 

Johnson Freeman ’81 was 

inducted as a member of the 

Girls High School category. 

Neile was enshrined in the 

Scholar-Athlete category at 

the ceremonies. A two-time 

Scholar-Athlete All-America 

and Conference Scholar- 

Athlete of the Year honoree, 

she is the only Saint Joseph’s 

athlete to receive the NCAA 

Woman of the Year Award 

for the State of Maine. 

On the hardwood, she 

played on three conference 

championship teams and 

remains as the program 

leader in both three-pointers 

made (178) and attempted 

(557). Also a standout soccer 

player, Neile was inducted 

into the Saint Joseph’s College 

Athletics Hall of Fame in 2000. 

Another SJC Hall of Famer, 

Linda Johnson Freeman holds 

Neile Joler Nelson ’95 

the career record at Saint 

Joseph’s for scoring average 

(19.7 PPG) and ranks fifth in 

points (1,560). She collected 

All-State honors three times 

while donning the Royal Blue. 

Before starring at St. Joe’s, 

Linda was a standout player 

at Scarborough High School. 

Linda Johnson Freeman ’81 

Coach Rick Simonds 

Former Saint Joseph’s men’s 

basketball coach Rick Simonds, 

who coached the Monks for 23 

seasons, was also inducted to 

the New England Basketball 

Hall of Fame in October. 

He guided the Royal Blue to 

11 conference titles and six 

appearances in the NAIA 

National Championship 

Tournament. He won 

15 Coach of the Year 

awards and remains 

the winningest head 

coach in SJC athletics 

history. Coach Simonds 

also served as Director 

of Athletics at Saint 

Joseph’s for 23 years. 

A U T U M N 2 0 0 9 

29


Wedding Bells 

Mary Fissell ’84 of Falls 

Church, Va., married David 

Cina on Oct. 31, 2006. Careerwise, 

she received certification 

as an occupational health 

nurse specialist in 1995. 

Ginny Cochran ’97 and 

Greggory Callahan were 

married on June 20 at St. 

Thomas Chapel in Falmouth, 

Mass. St. Joe’s alumni who 

attended were: Jill Audet 

Marinelli ’96, Nicole Keyes 

Gleason ’95, Lynne Dorman 

Fling ’97, Nicole Turgeon 

DeTerra ’96, Annmarie 

Magnussen Manning ’97, 

Gina Paone Cueva ’97, Eliza 

Madigan Gould ’97, Michelle 

Crockett Pedi ’97, Michael 

Marinelli ’95 and Josh Gould 

’96. Ginny is an applications 

analyst at Partners Healthcare 

in Boston. Ginny and Greg 

reside in Marshfield, Mass. 

Jaclyn Jaeger ’01 married 

Robert Pietrafetta on June 6 at 

Harris Pelham Inn in Pelham, 

N.H., followed by a reception 

at Indian Ridge Country Club 

in Andover, Mass. Sunny 

Quintal ’01 was a bridesmaid. 

Jaclyn is an editor at a business 

magazine in Boston, and 

Rob is a conductor on the 

Massachusetts Bay Commuter 

Rail. The couple resides in 

Lowell, Mass. 

Lisa Marie Perazone ’02 of 

Newton, Mass., married 

Aaron Michael Walker on 

August 15 in Danvers, Mass. 

Lisa is a second grade teacher 

at Dallin Elementary school in 

Arlington, Mass., and Aaron 

is a field service technician at 

High Voltage Maintenance in 

Walpole, Mass. 

Heidi Harmon ’05 and Chris 

Paris ’05, both of Manchester, 

N.H., were married on June 

20 at Saint Joseph Church 

in Portland, Maine, with a 

reception held at the Italian 

Heritage Center in Portland. 

Heidi is a social studies teacher 

at Campbell High School in 

Jaclyn Jaeger 

Pietrafetta ’01 

wedding party. 

Mary Fissell Cina ’84 

Rebecca 

Gentilcore 

Walsh ’06 

wedding 

party. 

Ginny Cochran Callahan ’97 

Heidi Harmon Paris ’05 and Christopher 

Paris ’05 on their big day, surrounded 

by their alumni friends. Left to right: 

Kristen Jewett ’05, Jennifer Dunn ’05, 

Heidi Dauphinee Presti ’05, Lisa Grenier 

’05, Jennifer Havey ’05, Kevin Benoit ’02, 

Julie Thomason ’05, Andrea Perreault 

Lydon ’04, Allison Mitchell ’05, 

Stephen Paris ’06, Sarah Tremblay ’05, 

Harrison Smith ’07, Shelley Maxfield ’05, 

Peter Russell ’06, Ann Pietrantonio ’07, 

Jennifer Cleasby ’08, Jessica Arsenault 

Gurney ’05, Matt Crellin ’06, Allyson 

Ferguson Collins ’05, Helene Liaci ’05. 

Missing from photo but in attendance: 

Ian Harmon ’08. 



Litchfield, N.H., and Chris is a 

senior accountant at Lutheran 

Social Services New England 

in Wellesley, Mass. 

Meaghan Muscato ’06 and 

William E. Chapman, Jr. ’06 of 

Nashua, N.H., were married 

on July 19 at St. John’s the 

Evangelist Parish in North 

Chelmsford, Mass., with 

a reception at Tewksbury 

Country Club. Fr. John Tokaz 

officiated at the wedding. 

Meaghan works at Jeanne 

D’Arc Credit Union in Lowell, 

Mass., and Billy is a physical 

education teacher at McKelvie 

Intermediate School. 

Rebecca Gentilcore ’06 and 

John Walsh were married on 

June 6. Rebecca works with 

special needs children and is 

taking courses at Worcester 

State College for her teaching 

special needs certification. 

John, a graduate of Wheaton 

College, works for Holt 

Education. The couple resides 

in Norfolk, Mass. 

Cynthia “Cyndi” Belanger 

’07, of Westborough, Mass., 

married Robert Rotondi on 

August 22 in Healy Chapel 

on campus. Fr. Paul Dumais, 

college chaplain, officiated 

at the service. The wedding 

reception was also held on 

campus. Cyndi is enrolled at 

Becker College in Worcester, 

Mass., to become a registered 

nurse, with the intent to 

continue her studies to 

become a nurse practitioner 

specializing in geriatric/ 

oncology medicine. Robert is 

an automotive technician at 

Main Street Service Center 

in Hopkinton, Mass., and 

also works for the police 

department in Westborough, 

Mass. Jill Cote ’07 was Cyndi’s 

bridal attendant. Other alumni 

in the bridal party were Ann 

Pietrantonio ’07, Kristin Cyr 

’07 and Josh Herrick ’07. 

Alexandra Schran ’07 and 

Joshua Steward were married 

on August 14 at the Dunegrass 

Country Club in Old Orchard 

Beach, Maine. Alexandra’s 

bridesmaids included alumnae 

Christine McGunnigal ’07 

and Aimee Chasse ’07. 

Alexandra and Joshua reside 

in Dixfield, Maine. Alexandra’s 

mother, Elizabeth Schran, is 

the director of institutional 

advancement at the college. 

Meaghan Muscato ’06 and William Chapman ’06 wedding party. 

Cyndi Belanger Rotondi ’07 

Alexandra Schran Steward ’07 and husband Joshua Steward with their attendants 

at Dunegrass Country Club. Alumnae bridesmaids were Christine McGunnigal ’07, 

center bridesmaid, and Aimee Chasse ’07, far right. Photography by Chris Silva. 

A U T U M N 2 0 0 9 

31

New 

Additions 

Kerry Ann Griffin Flahive 

’89 and husband John of 

Harrington Park, N.J., 

announce the birth of their 

third child, Molly Eileen, 

July 1, 2008. Molly Eileen 

joins big sisters Margaret 

Maureen & Mary Kathleen. 

Kerry Ann is a stay-at-home 

mom, a CCD teacher of 1 st 

and 4 th graders at Our Lady 

of Victories Church, and she 

volunteers at her daughters’ 

elementary school in the 

classroom and library. 

Sally Bailey McGinn ’91 

and husband Jonathan of 

Brunswick, Maine, welcomed 

son Samuel David on Oct. 5. 

Samuel David joins big brother 

Jack. Julianne Moore ’04, 

executive secretary to the vice 

president for academic affairs, 

is the grandmother of Samuel 

David and Jack. 

Connor James Traynham 

Molly Eileen Flahive with sisters Margaret and Mary 

Bill Traynham ’95 and wife 

Donna of Londonderry, 

N.H., announce the birth 

of their third son, Connor 

James, on June 27. Bill is a 

director of quality at Concert 

Pharmaceuticals in Lexington, 

Mass. 

Kellee Murphy Kirkelis ’97 

and husband Jason of Westlake 

Village, Calif., announce the 

birth of their second child, 

son Jaxon Dane, on Aug. 23. 

Jaxson Dane joins 2-yearold 

big brother Kelson 

Dean. Kellee is a senior sales 

executive at Allergan Dry Eye 

in Santa Barbara, Calif. 

Jen Dillihunt Brown ’99 and 

husband Bobby of Augusta, 

Maine, welcomed a daughter, 

Abigail Rose, Mar. 27, 2008. 

A.J. Leonard Ruth ’03 and 

husband Jeff ’03 of Windham, 

Maine, proudly announce 

the birth of their first child, 

Sienna Carol, on Jan. 25. 

A.J. is a 7th grade teacher at 

Windham Middle School, and 

Jeff is a police officer with the 

Portland Police Department. 

Condolences 

& Prayers 

The college community offers 

sympathy to... 

Anita Sirois Clavette ’59 of 

New Canada, Maine, on 

the passing of her husband, 

Thomas, on Sept. 30, 2008. 

Richard Scotland ’78 and 

Jane Sizeland Scotland ’80 

of Northborough, Mass., on 

the passing of his mother and 

her mother-in-law, Eileen M. 

Scotland, on July 19. 

The family of Ann Thuresson 

’79 of Waynesboro, Va., on her 

passing on Oct. 8. 

Ken Marino ’82 of Wind Gap, 

N.J., on the passing of his 

father, Dan Marino, Sept. 26. 

The family of Ina Pape ’86 of 

Dyersville, Iowa, on her passing 

on Jan. 17. 

Robyn Williams Stanley ’00 

of South Portland, Maine, and 

her family on the passing of 

her twin sister, Raelyn Williams 

Reny ’00, also of South 

Portland, on July 29. 

Katelyn and Lindsey Swiderski 

’12 and family on the passing 

of their mother, Elizabeth, of 

Chicopee, Mass., on July 14. 

To the family of Christopher 

Kiernan of Newport, R.I., 

who passed away on Aug. 

10. Chris held numerous 

positions at the college from 

1970 to 1980 – as dean of 

student affairs, director of 

admissions & financial aid, 

director of athletics, men’s 

basketball coach, and director 

of continuing education. 

Jaxon Dane Kirkelis with brother Kelson Dean 

Sienna Carol Ruth 

Rose Meehan, of the college’s 

institutional advancement 

office, on the passing of her 

grandmother, Irene Trepanier of 

Westbrook, Maine, on Oct. 14. 

32 32 S AS IA NI N T T J OJ O S ES PE H P H ’ S ’ S C CO O L L EL GE G E E MM A GA G A ZA IZ NI N E E

97 years ago the Sisters of Mercy created this college so we could flourish. 

INHERIT IT 

7 core values serve as the foundation of the Saint Joseph’s College educational mission. 

Faith • Excellence • Integrity • Community • Respect • Compassion • Justice 

LIVE IT 

Over 13,000 alumni worldwide are part of the powerful Saint Joseph’s College network. 

Each one of you has the power to shape the future of generations to come. 

INVEST IN IT 

You inherit it, you live it. Now is the time to invest in it. 

Your gift to this year’s Annual Fund provides financial help to students, 

supports faculty research and enrichment, provides cutting edge technology and 

equipment, and helps maintain a campus environment deserving 

of our magnificent setting and history. Your gift has an immediate and essential 

impact on Saint Joseph’s and generations of students to come. 

Please consider making your Annual Fund gift today. 

Call 207-893-7890 or visit: www.sjcme.edu/alumni and click on “Supporting SJC.”



Saint Joseph’s College of Maine 

Standish, Maine 04084-5236 

NON-PROFIT 

ORGANIZATION 

U.S.POSTAGE 

PAID 

PORTLAND, ME 

PERMIT NO.7 

www.sjcme.edu/magazine 

Change Service Requested 

The men’s soccer team won its first-ever title when it beat Emerson College to become the 2009 Great Northeast 

Athletic Conference Champions in early November, earning their first trip to the NCAA tournament.

In touch - Saint Joseph's College of Maine

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