100 students recognized for scholastic success - Penn State ...

Keeping in touch with friends and family of Penn State Hazleton http://www.hn.psu.edu/ Fall 2012
Inside this issue...
Alumni Chapter ...............2
Alumni Society ...............2
Chancellor’s message . ........3
For the Future (donor form) ....3
Pride of Penn State Hazleton . 4-5
Dr. Aurand passes away .......6
Researching family links. ......6
New professors on campus ....6
HIV research award ...........7
Telescope donation. ...........7
Retirees meet over lunch. ......8
On the Calendar...
Spring semester starts
Jan. 7
Taikoza Japanese drummers
Jan. 23, 7 p.m.
Slusser/Bayzick Building
THON Blood Drive
Jan. 28, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Evelyn Graham
Academic Building
Ice Sculptures
Jan. 31, Noon
Campus Mall
Admissions Open House
Feb. 2, 10 a.m.
Evelyn Graham Academic Building
THON Coach Bingo
Feb. 3, 1 to 4 p.m.
Gymnasium
The Screaming Orphans
Irish band
March 19, 7 p.m.
Slusser/Bayzick Building
Open House
March 23, 10 a.m.
Evelyn Graham Academic Building
Alumni Society Board Meeting
March 23, 9 a.m.
Engineering
Advisory Board Meeting
Program and Reunion
April 5
Evelyn Graham
Academic Building
Visit www.hn.psu.edu and click on
“News and Events” for more
information.
http://goo.gl/zCX1K
100 students recognized for scholastic success
More than 100 students
were recognized for
scholastic success at
the annual Academic
Achievement Awards
ceremony on Sun., Nov. 4
with a variety of awards
from the university and
the campus. Also honored
were several faculty
members for outstanding
teaching, advising, and
use of technology in the
classroom.
Above: Students earning Scholar’s Lion Awards for
the highest cumulative grade point average within
their college of study were, back row, from left: Daniel
A. Figuereo, Business Administration; Anthony T.
Trezza, Engineering; Samuel J. Weldon, Division of
Undergraduate Studies; Jamie D. Hock, Agriculture;
Julia D. Carter, Science; and Alexis A. Roberts,
Education. The students are pictured with, front row,
from left: Justin Nordstrom, assistant director of
Academic Affairs and associate professor of history;
Elizabeth Wright, director of Academic Affairs;
Chancellor Gary Lawler, and Jane Waitkus, Faculty
Senate president and instructor in English.
Left: Award-winning faculty members and their awards
were, back row, from left, Wes Grebski, associate
professor of engineering; Beatriz Glick, instructor in
Spanish; Mamoun Bader, professor of chemistry; and
Kathy Maxwell, adviser and instructor in kinesiology.
Penn State Hazleton donors recognized at dinner
The Highacres Society Dinner, an
annual celebration for philanthropy
directed to Penn State Hazleton, took
place Oct. 18 at the Valley Country Club
in Sugarloaf. A record number (more
than 180) of donors and their recipient
students, faculty and staff attended
the event held to thank those who have
given generously to the campus to
Continued on page 7
Scholarship recipient
Alexandria Pisani
Scholarship recipient
Andrew Obrzut
Morgan Foundation establishes $1 million endowment
A $1 million scholarship endowment to
benefit Penn State Hazleton students has
been made possible by the John E. Morgan
Foundation. The John E. Morgan Foundation
Trustee Scholarship will be created, which will
help qualified students with financial need.
The Foundation made the gift to The
Pennsylvania State University Philanthropic
Fund, which then directed the funds to Penn
State Hazleton. It is the largest gift that the
Hazleton campus has received during
For the Future: The Campaign for Penn
State Students.
From left, Kevin Salaway and Pasco Schiavo, For the Future
campaign chair, and Chancellor Gary Lawler, far right,
induct Blair Bates, Susan Engle and Louise Dove into the
Highacres Society for their generous land gift.
Rosalie “Lee” Muroski
was inducted into the
Highacres Society for
establishing an academic
award to memorialize her
late husband, Michael.
She is pictured with, from
left, Pasco Schiavo and
Chancellor Gary Lawler.
Larry Mroz, Penn State gift planning officer, second from
right, received the crystal and medallion given to Highacres
Society inductees on behalf of the John E. Morgan Foundation.
Representing Penn State Hazleton were, from left, Pasco
Schiavo and Chancellor Gary Lawler.

page 2
w
Alumni Society
Alumni Society reaching out to Hazleton alumni this spring
The Hazleton Alumni Society reaches out to all alumni of the
Penn State Hazleton campus, both in person and virtually.
Whether you live close to the campus or across the country,
the society strives to connect our alumni to each other and
the campus.
Locally, the society
was recently one of
four co-sponsoring
alumni societies for
the first-ever Penn
State Hockey Night
at Mohegan Sun
Arena in Wilkes-
Barre. The arena
was filled with Penn
State alumni and
fans, there to cheer
on the newly established Division I varsity men’s hockey team
in only their second game. The society treated all attendees
to Penn State spirit shakers and paw print tattoos! The team
persevered and pulled out an overtime win over American
International University, due in part to the Blue and White-Out
crowd in the stands!
The society will also be reaching out this spring to alumni
of the campus in other parts of the country with gatherings
hosted by your fellow alumni. Whether a stand-alone social
event or in association with events such as the President’s
Concert in Washington, D.C. in February, we plan to gather
our campus alumni together to socialize and celebrate their
alma mater.
And, to further spread our Hazleton campus spirit, the society
has designed “Hazleton Alumni” shirts available for order,
no matter where you are. Please visit the Hazleton Alumni
Society website at http://psualum.com/affiliate/hazleton for an
order form and instructions.
A warm note of welcome, and thank you for agreeing to serve
Alumni Chapter
In a recent bi-monthly chapter newsletter issue, the president
of the Hazleton Chapter of the Penn State Alumni Association
asked members if they often get the chance to say, “I really
made a difference.”
With the recent establishment of a second endowment at
Penn State Hazleton, and other sponsored activities which
connect the campus to the greater Hazleton community, the
local alumni chapter certainly can say, “we do!”
The chapter was recently honored, along with the Hazleton
Alumni Society and several other affiliate groups, with the
Alumni Association’s 2012 Joint Activities Award. This was
the result of one of the more popular regional events planned
for alumni and friends of the University – Penn State Day
at Knoebels. Mark your calendars – this successful event is
planned once again for May 2013! Watch for more details.
And slightly closer to home, the chapter is providing support
for local Penn State alumni and friends:
• greeting community guests and scooping Penn State
Creamery ice cream at Community Day in September;
• sponsoring a bus trip to the Penn State vs. Ohio State
football game in October;
• collecting food for the needy with collection boxes at the
campus in November;
• and hosting a photo opportunity with Santa and the Nittany
Lion in the beautiful Evelyn Graham Academic Building
atrium just a few weeks ago. The photo event was of double
benefit to the community as families brought new toys
and games to the event to donate to the Ronald McDonald
House at Geisinger Medical Center in Danville.
your fellow alumni, to our newest society board members:
Jack Fellin ’60, Nathan Halenar ’11, Marie Hayes ’08, Paula
Krzemien ’85 and Mollie Warnitsky ’00. We also want to keep
in touch and hear from you – our alumni - wherever you may
reside. Please don those Penn State shirts and hats, take a
photo, and email us or post on the society’s Facebook page
www.facebook.com/HazletonAlumniSociety.
The Society welcomed alumni back to campus during
Community Day, hosting an informal open house in the area
of the library which is designated to be a future alumni lounge.
This area was also the location for an exhibit of photos by
campus alumna Dr. Lil Junas ’57. Dr. Junas’ exhibit of candid
photographs depicted lifestyles and cultures from around
the world, and is a virtual travelogue of her journeys and
experiences as a photojournalist.
Keep in touch
Reconnect with friends and the campus!
• Follow us on Facebook http://goo.gl/zCX1K
• Submit alumni updates at
http://www.hn.psu.edu/Alumni/alumniform.htm
Alumni Chapter makes a difference, thinks spring at Knoebels
Local alumni and friends are encouraged to join the chapter
and enjoy their calendar of activities.
For more information, visit their website: http://www.hn.psu.
edu/Alumni/alumorg.htm
Denise Corcoran ’89 and
Dr. Harold Aurand, Jr. ’86,
right, accept the award
on behalf of the Hazleton
chapter and society at a
dinner held on October 26
at University Park. They
were among a group of
alumni affiliates honored
for their collaboration.

Chancellor’s Message
To our Penn State Hazleton family and friends,
http://www.hn.psu.edu/
A message from the chancellor
I hope this edition of Insight/Outlook finds you keeping warm and enjoying a mild beginning
(although I’m sure this will change) to the winter months.
We have had a very productive fall semester, even though it has seemed to literally fly by. It seems
like only yesterday we were helping students and their families unload their belongings on movein
day. While enrollments have dipped somewhat this year, it has still been a busy time at campus.
The majority of our time has been focused on new initiatives to bring more four-year programs to
our campus. We hope to double the number of programs on campus to twelve within the next few
years. We will have more specific news about individual programs as proposals are approved. Our
goal is to have at least two new programs in place for fall 2013. We are also extending ourselves
to community colleges in eastern Pennsylvania in an effort to articulate programs to bring in
more junior level students to our existing programs. That effort is moving along well. Outside of
the classroom, we have been extremely busy working to engage students in a meaningful way.
Research shows that students who are highly engaged are much more likely to be retained. We took our new freshmen
during orientation throughout the Hazleton region on buses to do community service projects. We had a very successful
Undergraduate Research program this fall to introduce students to faculty research interests and engage them to work
collaboratively with our students. The list and activities go on. We are looking forward to more!
We continue to maintain strong working relationships with our colleagues at University Park and across the
Commonwealth. The resources of the University are always helpful in planning for the future. There has been a great deal
of transparency from President Erickson and Interim Provost Pangborn, along with our Vice President for Commonwealth
Campuses, Dr. Hanes. All of these relationships are vital to moving our campus forward. We greatly appreciate their
leadership and vision at a critical time as we try to be more efficient with financial resources that are limited.
We are moving forward in a positive manner regarding our capital campaign, For the Future: The Campaign for Penn State
Students. We greatly appreciate all the support we receive from our donors as we build more student scholarships. The
campaign is now two thirds of the way toward its conclusion and your continued support has been essential in our success
to date. As you will read on the front page, we recently announced a $1 million gift from the John E. Morgan Foundation
to create the John E. Morgan Foundation Trustee Scholarship to benefit Penn State Hazleton students. This, along with the
many other scholarships created at the campus over the years, is helping to ensure access to the campus for deserving
students throughout the region and across the U.S. You can be proud that your alma mater continues to help many young
people pursue their dreams of becoming a Penn Stater!
I do hope that you and your families have a joyous holiday and a happy and healthy new year!
Sincerely,
___ Yes, I/we want to support Penn State Hazleton with a gift to the For the Future Campaign.
Name: ___________________________________________________________________________
Address: __________________________________________________________________________
City: __________________________________________ State: _______ Zip: __________________
Employer: __________________________________________ Matching gift company? __ Yes __ No
My Penn State Affiliation: __ Alumnus _____________________________ (Year, Campus)
__ Friend __ Parent __ Other (specify) __________________________
Direct my gift to support:
_____ Hazleton Future Fund (XBHFF)
_____ Hazleton Campus General Scholarship Fund (SBHGN)
_____ Annual Fund for the Honors Program (XBHHH)
_____ Faculty Scholarly Activities Fund (XBHFS)
Check Payment: Gift Enclosed: $ _______________ Please make checks payable to Penn State University
Please return to: Penn State Hazleton, Attn: Kevin Salaway, 76 University Drive, Hazleton, PA 18202
For credit card payments and electronic fund transfers, go to: www.hn.psu.edu/giving/givetoday.htm
Chancellor
Gary M. Lawler
page 3
For the Future: The Campaign
for Penn State Students will be a
defining effort for the University and Penn
State Hazleton. Please consider making
a gift today. Contact Kevin Salaway at
570-450-3175 or email kjs27@psu.edu to
discuss your interest in supporting this
effort in other ways, or with a major gift.
Remember...
Your pledge stays right here
at Penn State Hazleton!
AD30N

The
page 4
Pride of
Penn State Hazleton
By Kevin J. Salaway
Director of Development and University Relations
Salvatore Pisapia ’99 was busy at work
when I met him at the job site at Dayton
Towers where his construction company,
Skyline Restoration, is managing a major
restoration of several buildings in the
Far Rockaway, NY area. Sal is a project
coordinator, overseeing the enormous
$25 million restoration job’s daily
project list and managing several subcontractors
on the site. He lives in Levittown, NY and
sends greetings to friends from Penn State Hazleton.
Kevin D’Ausilio ’04 is a vice president
of Investment Customer Group (ICG) at
Citigroup where he manages portfolios
of investments for commercial clients.
Kevin was highly involved in SGA at the
campus and remembered Dr. Dwayne
Hilton, retired director of Student
Services and Engagement. He was
recently promoted at Citigroup and was
planning to be married the weekend I
caught up with him. Here’s wishing Kevin and Jaclyn all
the best!
Oneaka Hendricks ’99 and I met over
lunch near her offices at Deutsche
Bank where she serves as a client
development specialist, selling
investment alternatives to banks, law
firms and real estate companies who
have need for escrow accounts. She has
a client base of both commercial and
individual accounts in the Northeast
and some mid-Atlantic states. She remembered the late
Joe Boyle as her instructor and thought he was a great
teacher.
Neil Klein ’87 works at Carret Asset
Management on 57th Street in New
York City, where he serves as a
portfolio manager. Neil remembered
Dr. Carl Frankel at the campus as being
instrumental in helping him choose his
career path. Neil and his wife, Mary ’86,
(who earned her M.B.A. from Cornell)
have two children, ages 15 and 9. Neil
hopes that his son may choose Penn State when the time
comes and that he may possibly play for the baseball or
football team.
Michael D’Ausilio ’00 is a director in
Human Resources at JP Morgan Chase
in New York. Mike came to the campus
from Middle Island, Long Island, and was
the first of two brothers to come to the
campus. His brother Kevin is featured
above. While at the campus Mike was
very involved in SGA and other student
organizations. His first assignment at
Citi led to other offers along the way and he ultimately
moved to Chase. He and his wife, Anne, live in New York.
I met Ted Minor ’60 and
his wife, Joy (Jo Donish),
at their home in Williston
Park, NY, where they
have lived for the past
30 years. It turns out
that his wife is also an
alum of the campus, who
attended in 1952 and
1953, but finished her
degree in nursing at Johns Hopkins. Ted spent his career
in the phone business, starting at New York Telephone
upon graduation. They have two daughters, Joyce and
Janice. Joyce is a consultant/entrepreneur who develops
leadership programs for corporations and travels
extensively. Janice is a classic musician (clarinet) and
teaches at James Madison
Walter Kowalski ’02 is a New York City
firefighter currently stationed in Brooklyn.
Walter’s wife, Leslie, is an attorney with
a degree from Cornell. They have two
children, ages 2 and 1/2 and 5 months.
Walter is an officer in the New York City
alumni chapter and serves as the events
co-chair. We discussed ways that we
might collaborate on events with the
campus in NYC.
I met Joel Hoffman ’59a, ’67, and his wife
in Bolton, Connecticut, where they have a
lovely century home situated on ten acres
with an expansive overlook of a valley.
They have three children, two boys and
a girl. Joel came to the Hazleton campus
to begin his college career and earned an
associate degree in engineering. During
his career he held positions at IBM, ITT,
Northern Telecom and Mergent. Joel has
since retired and is enjoying time with family and in his
summer home on Cape Cod.
Dennis Bro ’87a works at Pratt Whitney
in Glastonbury, Connecticut, where he
serves as a project engineer. Over the
course of time, he attained a degree
in architecture from Boston College,
but returned to his true career passion
in aerospace engineering. While at the
campus he told me that he developed a
great respect for Dr. Wes Grebski and
Dr. Elliot Eisenberg, which helped him land a trainee
position at Pratt and Whitney.
Alexander Chik ’75 is in media planning
for Media Partnership Corp. This follows
a rotation of positions at some of the
largest and most prestigious advertising
agencies in the world. His wife, Cheryl, is
a surgical nurse. They have two children:
a son who is a journalism graduate
of Penn State now writing for local

newspaper, and a daughter who is a recent psychology
major graduate from Penn State and currently seeking
employment.
I met Paul O’Pecko ’77a, ’80, at the
Mystic Seaport museum where he
serves as executive director and
curator. Paul came to the campus from
his home in Vandling, a small town
north of Scranton. He remembered Dr.
Mike Santulli, who was instrumental in
helping to guide him to a career path
in arts, sciences and history. He and
his wife, Bernardette ’80, have three daughters, ages 20
to 25.
Anthony Leshinskie ’84 is a nuclear
design engineer at Westinghouse in
Windsor, Connecticut. Tony grew up
in Shamokin, one of five children.
He came to the campus to study
engineering and remembered Doctors
Eisenburg and Shaevel, and had
high praise for both of them. He still
maintains contact with classmates
Karl Zimmerman and Alan Blamey.
Tony’s wife, Andrea ’84, has a degree in animal biology
from Penn State and works at the Salmon Brook
Veterinary Hospital. They share a passion for medieval
reenactment and had just returned from a two-week
“encampment” experience in Split Rock, Pa.
Suzanne Caravaggio ’91 works at
the Massachusetts Department of
Corrections in Boston where she
serves as an attorney representing
staff of the department. Suzanne is
married with three children, ages 12,
9 and 3. Her husband, Colby, is an art
teacher in a local school district.
Louis J. Liotta, Ph.D. ’85, has been a
professor of chemistry at Stonehill
College since 1992. His area of
specialty is organic synthesis and
has written and published numerous
articles on the topic. His wife, Sheila,
earned her Ph.D. from Cornell and
teaches chemistry at Providence
College. They have two children, a son
who is currently looking at colleges
and a daughter, 13. Lou remembered Doctors Eisenberg
and Frankel, and used to play racquetball with Dr.
Leonard Shaevel.
Craig McKeever ’87 is a principal
design engineer at Honeywell where
he heads a department in aerospace
engine design that is responsible for
jet engine design. He had high praise
for his former engineering professor
Elliot Eisenberg and physics professor
Dave Miller at the campus and wanted
me to share greetings with them at
the earliest opportunity.
Scott Bainbridge ’97 is a design
engineer at Intel and has been there
about nine years, having come
through a number of positions along
the way. He came to the campus
from the Lehigh Valley area after
completing his associate degree at
Northampton Community College. His
wife, Tanya ’98, is a school teacher
http://www.hn.psu.edu/
and their first child is now three months old. Scott
remembered engineering instructor Ken Dudeck at
the campus and asked that I pass along well wishes.
Carl Markovchik ’88 is a member of a
Penn State family with father, uncles,
cousins and siblings all Penn State
alumni. A very proud Penn Stater,
Carl is a plant manager at DuPont. He
mentioned that recruiting at DuPont
focuses on engineering and many of
their recruits are Penn Staters. Carl and
his wife have two children, Chandler
and Cooper. Chandler is a high school senior, now
looking at colleges, and is focused on Texas schools
UT and A&M, as well as Penn State. He told me that
they are currently awaiting word from Penn State.
Steven Gumm P.E. ’95 and I met over
breakfast near his offices at HHS
Associates, an engineering firm in
Dallas where he serves as one of the
principals and has worked for about
seven years. Steve came to the campus
from Mineola, Long Island, and earned
a degree in engineering from the
University before heading out to pursue
his profession. He fondly remembered
engineering faculty Wes Grebski and Ken Dudeck.
Dr. David Myer ’66, ’74g and Donna Foster Myer ’66,
’69g both have ties to the campus. Donna’s father
was an EET professor
at the Hazleton campus
for many years. She
came to the campus as
a freshman, as did her
husband David, who
came from Pike County
near Matamoras, NY.
David recently retired
from a job teaching
physics at Trident University in Charleston and Donna
recently retired from a state agency focused on
substance abuse education. They have one daughter,
Sally, who lives nearby in San Antonio.
Caren Adamson ’81 is assistant
administrator at Citizens Medical
Center in Victoria, Texas, where she
has worked for the past 28 years.
Caren grew up in Mifflinburg and
earned her nursing certificate from
the Harrisburg Medical Center before
coming to Penn State Hazleton to start
her baccalaureate degree in nursing
which she completed at University
Park. She went on to earn her master’s degree from
the University of Texas. Caren’s daughter, Bret, is a
physical therapy student in Victoria.
Daniele Dezago ’07 is an attorney with
the law firm of Santangelo, Benvenuto
and Slattery on Long Island in New
York. After graduating from Penn
State, she earned her Juris Doctor
degree from the Thomas M. Cooley
Law School in Lansing, Mich. She
remembered Patrick O’Neill as one of
her favorite instructors. She told me
that her recent trip to Europe was made much better
with the background in art she received in O’Neill’s
art history class.
page 5

page 6
Campus News
Retired professor and administrator passes away
Dr. Harold W.
Aurand
Academics Academics
Researching links
with grandparents
Dr. Harold W. Aurand, professor
emeritus of history and former campus
administrator, passed away November
22 at the age of 72. Dr. Aurand served
the campus for thirty-five years, teaching
courses in American history, labor studies,
and American studies while earning
honors for his classroom contributions
from students and professional
organizations.
Recognized as one of the foremost
scholars on anthracite history, he authored
four books and numerous articles which appeared in print
and in presentations. He also lectured on the “American Molly
Maguires” before audiences in Ireland.
Dr. Aurand was a founding member and director of the
Pennsylvania Labor Society, and was highly involved in
Assistant Professor of Communication
Arts and Sciences Daniel Mansson
studies traits that solidify relationships,
whether between students and teachers;
grandparents and grandchildren; friends
on Facebook,
or mentors and
protégés.
People receive
affection from
relationships.
In subtle ways
relationships also
help people do
better in school,
bolster their mental
Dr. Daniel Mansson
health and even
their physical wellbeing, as Mansson
explained recently – in person and in print.
In November he went to Orlando, Florida,
to present a paper about the relationship
between doctoral students and their
advisors during the conference of the
National Communication Association.
The association published a summary
of his research in the December issue of
Communication Currents.
According to Mansson, relationships
with mentors can determine whether
graduate students earn their doctorate
degrees. Students dissatisfied with the
mentor might quit their programs. But
when the relationships work, they add to
the satisfaction and professional growth
of both the mentors and protégés – even
after the students graduate.
Students draw similar benefits from
their grandparents through relationships
that Mansson has explored in numerous
studies. The relationships have become
more important as people live longer.
Read the complete story at
www.hn.psu.edu.
Pennsylvania Historical Association and the Pennsylvania
Historical and Museum Commission. He was also active in many
local clubs and organizations.
Former Campus Executive Officer Dr. James Staudenmeier said,
“No matter what Harold was involved in – teaching, research
or community service – he made tremendous contributions.
His classes were in demand, his research and knowledge were
nationally known, and he was a hands-on member of many
community organizations. Plus, he was extremely dedicated to
his family.”
He earned an A.B. degree in history from Franklin and Marshall
College and master’s and doctoral degrees in history from
Penn State.
Surviving are his wife, Frances; a son, Harold Aurand, Jr. ’86, and
his wife, Helen; a daughter, Michele Aurand ’92; and a grandson,
Harold Aurand III.
New engineering and physics professors
use new methods to challenge students
A new physics professor on campus
can detect when a laser beam waivers
the width of a hair on a journey to
the moon, while a new engineering
professor challenged his students to
simulate the same trip in a rocket ship.
Their reach toward the moon isn’t the
only tie-in between Dr. David Starling,
assistant professor of physics, and Dr.
Joseph Ranalli, assistant professor
of engineering, who arrived together
at Penn State Hazleton for the fall
semester.
Starling is creating a laser lab on
campus, and Ranalli’s engineering
students are building equipment for
the lab.
Both professors, too, seek ways to
interest students in their introductory
courses.
“They have a lot of shared research
and tremendous energy, a shared
love of students and teaching,” Dr. Liz
Wright, the director of academic affairs
for Penn State Hazleton, said.
Ranalli said his professors influenced
him to become a teacher.
“I saw their passion. I thought I would
share it with the next generation of
students,” he said.
For an early lesson, he chose a
computer game to help students learn
the design process.
The game required students to devise
a plan for sending a rocket to the
moon. They had to choose engines and
fuel for stages of the rocket, but also
learn about entering and leaving the
orbits of Earth and the moon.
“Students seemed to like playing the
game,” he said. “I almost describe it as
a virtual lab exercise,” he said.
Starling, meanwhile, tries to include a
demonstration each time he teaches a
chapter.
In one class, he spun a bicycle wheel,
and held it horizontally. Then he flipped
the wheel so it turned in the opposite
direction, just as a turntable he stood
on began rotating like a merry-goround.
“It just shows the conservation of
angular momentum,” he said. Doing
the math to explain the motions gets
complex.
“So when you see it, it’s pretty cool,”
Starling said.
Math never rattled him, thanks to his
grandmother.
As a boy he spent an hour with her
before school.
“She would run the multiplication
tables with me … When we started
doing the science, math was never the
problem,” he said.
Instead he could concentrate on
the principles of physics, which he
found to be “simple, beautiful, not
complicated.” From a few laws “you
derive all the intricate behavior of the
universe.”
Those laws are true in the classical
physics of Kepler and Newton.
But as a graduate student, Starling
ventured into quantum physics, which
the uninitiated realize isn’t straight
forward as soon as they hear the name
of a fundamental precept.
It’s called the Uncertainty Principle,
Werner Heisenberg’s idea that an
observer who knows the position of a
particle can’t simultaneously know its
momentum.
Read the complete story at
www.hn.psu.edu.

Campus Life
Alumni
Development
http://www.hn.psu.edu/
Penn State Hazleton donors recognized (continued from page 1)
enable students to achieve their dreams
and to aid faculty in teaching innovations.
Throughout the evening, students,
faculty and staff offered words of thanks
about the importance of private support
of the campus and our students.
Alexandria Pisani, a freshman from
Albrightsville, received the Sharon and
Keith Rohrbach Trustee Scholarship
in Memory of Bartol and Elaine Fellin
and Michael and Mary Berish, which
will assist in her pursuit of a degree in
chemistry.
Chic Sacco Memorial and Valley
Country Club Trustee Scholarship
recipient Andrew Obrzut, a freshman
from McAdoo majoring in engineering,
talked about how much receiving
this scholarship meant to him – and
his family. Andy, who has delivered
Dr. Gary Matyas ’78 earns $5 million HIV research award
A Penn State Hazleton
alumnus won an
award that will pay
him $5 million to
research his proposal
to develop a vaccine
against HIV that
also prevents heroin
addiction.
Dr. Gary R. Matyas
Dr. Gary Matyas ’78
’78 captured the 2012
Avant-Garde Award
for Medications Development from the
National Institute on Drug Abuse with his
plan to attack twin scourges.
“There is a strong correlation between
heroin abuse and HIV infection, especially
in developing countries,” Matyas said of
the Human Immunodeficiency Virus that
causes AIDS. “The possibility of creating a
combination heroin/HIV vaccine provides
an important opportunity to address both
a unique treatment for heroin abuse as
well as continuing the quest to develop an
effective preventive HIV vaccine.”
Matyas works in Silver Spring, Md., at the
U.S. Military HIV Research Program at the
Walter Reed Army Institute of Research,
where work already produced an antiheroin
component of the vaccine.
In collaboration between the HIV Research
Program and the National Institute,
the researchers used haptens, a small
molecule chemically similar to abused
drugs like heroin. Haptens bind with
protein carriers to induce an immune
response against the addictive drugs.
Now, it is ready for optimization and
advanced, pre-clinical tests.
Through the Avant-Garde Award, Matyas
will receive $1 million a year for five years
to support the next phase of research
Donation helps campus students aim for the stars
Hazleton resident Richard Hummel recently presented
astronomy equipment to the physics and science
departments at Penn State Hazleton. Among the items in
the gift are a telescope with a wide range of lenses and
accessories, astronomer’s binoculars, and related books.
Hummel, a disabled veteran, said, “Astronomy has been
a passion of mine for so many years, starting when I was
on a Navy ship sailing around the world. I decided to
donate the equipment to spark an interest and passion in
students here at Penn State Hazleton.”
Penn State Hazleton Chancellor Gary Lawler said, “We
thank Richard Hummel for thinking of our students and
campus when he decided to donate this equipment.
We continue to build the resources for our faculty who
are top-rate scholars through gifts, grants and purchases
to ultimately enhance the teaching learning experience for
students.”
David Starling, assistant professor of physics, added, “Students
at Penn State Hazleton are highly interested in astronomy, and
those enrolled in the astronomy course and related courses will
greatly benefit from this gift.”
newspapers since age 10 and
understands the value of hard work,
extended his gratitude to Michael Leib
and Gary Lamont who represented the
committee that raises scholarship funds.
New inductees into the Highacres
Society included Rosalie Muroski, longtime
campus instructor in sociology
who established the Michael T. Muroski
Academic Award in Engineering in
memory of her husband. Felicia and
Blair Bates, Blain Bates, Louise and Dr.
William Dove, Susan Engle, Cynthia and
Thomas Engle, Jane and Stephen Hutton,
and Peter McCorison were thanked and
inducted into the Highacres Society for a
26-acre land gift. Mr. Timothy Imbert was
inducted posthumously for establishing
the Timothy Imbert Scholarship in
Business through an estate gift. The John
page 7
E. Morgan Foundation, represented by
Linda and James Zigmant, Kim and Jay
Wagner, and Sylvia and Jon Zizelmann,
established a $1 million scholarship
endowment to benefit campus students.
This was the the largest gift that the
Hazleton campus has received during
Penn State’s current fundraising effort,
For the Future: The Campaign for Penn
State Students.
Key staff members’ remarks centered
on the importance of the For the Future
campaign, which will conclude on June
30, 2014. Chancellor Gary Lawler thanked
donors and volunteers for making it
possible for so many students to benefit
from scholarships. Kevin Salaway
announced that $5.4 million has been
raised to date. He also thanked campaign
committee members for their efforts.
and development. The Henry M. Jackson
Foundation for the Advancement of
Military Medicine Inc. will administer the
grant for the work, which will continue as
a collaboration between the HIV Research
Program and the National Institute.
Matyas, chief, Adjuvants and Formulation
Section, Laboratory of Adjuvants and
Antigen Research at the HIV Research
Program, spent his entire career
researching diseases and developing
vaccines.
Originally from Mountain Grove, he
began undergraduate studies at Penn
State Hazleton before completing his
bachelor of science degree in biophysics
at University Park. He earned a doctoral
degree in biological sciences while
focusing on glycolipids and their changes
in cancer in 1985 from Purdue University,
West Lafayette, IN.
Chancellor Gary Lawler (middle, right) thanks equipment donor Richard Hummel.
Dr. Lawler continued, “The long-term goal for this equipment
is to use it in conjunction with the recent 26-acre land gift from
the Engle, Bates and Dove families to build an astronomical
observatory. This project has already garnered a high degree of
interest from community members and local astronomy clubs,
and we have already begun raising money for it.”

InsightOutlook
76 University Drive
Hazleton, PA 18202
(570) 450-3000
www.hn.psu.edu
RETURN SERVICE REQUESTED
A group of Penn State
Hazleton retirees
recently gathered
for their bi-monthly
breakfast meeting at
Perkins restaurant near
the campus. One of the
many distinctions of the
Hazleton campus is the
pride and affection that
so many of our alumni
express toward faculty and staff who
have contributed to their development
as students and to their professional
success. It is with this in mind that we
salute our retirees and thank them for
their enormous contributions.
Front row, from left, Nick Skimbo
instructor in accounting and finance;
Deidre Jago, assistant professor of
kinesiology; Marge Stahura, instructor in
InsightOutlook Volume X, Number 4
InsightOutlook is published three times a year by the Office of Development and University Relations at Penn State
Hazleton. We welcome your comments and future story ideas.
Office of Development and University Relations · Penn State Hazleton · 76 University Drive · Hazleton, PA 18202
Kevin J. Salaway
Director
Phone: (570) 450-3015
E-mail: kjs27@psu.edu
Susan M. Bartal
University Relations
Phone: (570) 450-3179
E-mail: smb16@psu.edu
mathematics; Joanne Stahura, instructor
in mathematics; and Dr. Dwayne Hilton,
director of Student and Engagement
Services. Back row, from left, Dr. John
Madden, chancellor; Dr. Eugene Miller,
assistant professor of history; Dr. David
Orbin, assistant professor of biology;
and Dr. Michael Santulli, associate
professor of philosophy.
Retirees unavailable for the photo were
Dr. Elliot Eisenberg, assistant professor
Carole H. Shearer
Alumni Relations
Phone: (570) 450-3016
E-mail: chs14@psu.edu
To learn more about Penn State Hazleton and its academic programs, events and activities, visit us at www.hn.psu.edu.
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Just like old times for retired campus faculty/staff
of engineering; Judy O’Donnell, advising
center coordinator and instructor in
English; Dr. Anne Hester, instructor in
psychology; Dr. David Miller, professor
of physics; Dr. Eric Bell, instructor in
education, Lawrence Biacchi, instructor
in economics; and Sally McGuire,
director of Continuing Education.
Our retirees wanted to send their holiday
wishes to all of their former Penn State
Hazleton students.
Jackie B. Scarcella
Administrative Support Assistant
Phone: (570) 450-3560
E-mail: jbs22@psu.edu
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