Under the Arch

ALUMNI GIFTS TO PROVIDE FACULTY SUPPORT, STUDENT SCHOLARSHIPS

Recent gifts from two Gannon University alumni will allow the school to provide additional support for faculty and to create student scholarships.

A $100,000 gift from Lawrence M. Beeman of Arlington, Va., will be used to create the John E. Waldron Faculty Academic Excellence Grant.

Under the terms of the agreement, Beeman will gift to Gannon $10,000 per year for each of the next 10 years. Beeman’s gift will allow annual awards to be made to Gannon faculty members.

The selection of grant recipients and the amounts of individual awards will be determined by Gannon’s Faculty Development Committee.

Beeman named his gift in honor of the late John E. Waldron, for whom Gannon University’s Waldron Campus Center is named. Waldron served as a dean of instruction and dean of business administration at Gannon.

Beeman, a native of Rochester, N.Y., graduated from Gannon in 1965 with a bachelor’s degree in accounting.

He enjoyed a long career in government. For nine years, Beeman worked for the General Accounting Office, leaving the office with the title of audit manager.

Beeman then worked for the Mine Safety and Health Administration, a part of the Department of Labor. He served as chief of the office of Civil Penalty Assessments and retired as chief of technical compliance investigations for coal mining.

A $25,000 gift from Ajith Kumar, who earned master’s degrees from Gannon in business administration and engineering, will allow the university to create a scholarship for a Gannon graduate student in electrical and computer engineering.

According to the terms of the scholarship agreement, the student must have earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Kerala, located in India. Kumar, principal engineer, chief engineers office at General Electric Transportation Systems in Lawrence Park, earned a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from Kerala.

Kumar also has a master’s degree in electrical engineering from Stanford University in Palo Alto, Calif.

OUR FOLKS

Please remember all in your prayers as regretfully we announce the deaths of:

Ruth Kohlman, grandmother of Gannon student Katy Finnerty.
Emily Pryhoda, grandmother of Gannon student Chris Dombkowski.

OUR EVENTS

Tuesday, January 25 – Gannon Striders Pedometer Program: Info sessions will be held 11:15 to 11:45 a.m. and from 12:15 to 12:45 p.m. in room 219 of the Waldron Center. For more information, call ext. 7145 or 7597.
Thursday, January 27 – Community Mass: Scheduled for 11 a.m. in the Mary, Seat of Wisdom Chapel.
Friday, January 28 – Faculty Senate: General Faculty Forum. Scheduled for 3 to 4:30 p.m. in the Founder’s Room in the library.
Thursday-Sunday, Feb. 10-13 – Schuster Theatre: “Desdemona: A Play about a Handkerchief.” Performances directed by Paula Barrett. All Thursday-Saturday performances start at 8 p.m.; Sunday matinees begin at 3 p.m. Additional performances will be held Thursday-Saturday, Feb. 17-19.
Wednesday, February 16 – Financial Aid Workshop: To help parents and students complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) and to provide a general overview of the financial aid process. Scheduled for 6:30 p.m. in room 1200 of the Palumbo Center.
“Our Events” is intended to serve as a random sample of campus events. For a more complete listing, refer to Eventcal.

THE PRESIDENT'S SCHEDULE

Monday, January 24 – Social Work Site Team Visit (Jan. 24-25); Saint Vincent Health System Board meeting; pre-game reception; men’s and women’s basketball vs. Mercyhurst College. Wednesday, January 26 – Downtown Improvement District Commercial Enhancement Committee meeting. Friday, January 28 – Guest speaker at Villa Maria High School. Saturday, January 29 – Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities annual meeting (Jan. 29-31).

CURRENT BIRTHDAYS

Joanne Revelt. Michael Schwabenbauer. Christopher Begley. Thomas Sebunia. Carol Miller. Michael Goebel. Debra Custer. David Frew. Darlene Theisen. Katherine Wardi-Zonna. Aydin Yesildirek. Kate Carnell. Kurt Spence. Christine Matheis. Kristine Legters. Daniel Manus. Barry Jackisch. Thomas Serena. Walter Strosser. Geraldine Jankowski. Bud Elwell. Christianne Sukitsch. Richard Sekula. Anthony Keck. Ann Marie Shareef. Constantine Kliorys. Janet Laboda. Abdullah Mokhriby. John Vohlidka. Desiree Herter. Daniel Groucutt. Richard Bonalewicz. Barb Sambroak. Don Sherman. Lawrence Pennington. Tony Melendez. Gerald Trambley. Judy Alex. Della Gentile. Ruth Shoemaker. Alan Shatto. Bonita Booker. Ed Saloum. Kay Wolfgang.

HEARD ON CAMPUS

Gannon and Mercyhurst College will renew their rivalry at Hammermill Center tonight, Monday, Jan. 24. Look for Energy-FM 90 WERG to be broadcasting live around campus that day, and at Hammermill prior to tip-off. Travis Phelps and Brad Philipps call the women’s game on Energy-FM 90 starting at 6; listen for the men’s game on JET Radio 1400 and on-line world-wide at wergfm.com. Tune-in to Energy-FM 90 WERG (89.9-FM) for chances to win tickets!
Service Recognition Ceremony rescheduled: The ceremony, originally scheduled for Friday, Jan. 28, has been rescheduled and instead will be held Friday, March 11. Please plan accordingly.
Media interviews: Thanks to Gannon colleagues for their assistance with recent interview requests. Anita Snider, director of the Schuster Program for the Arts, did an interview with Robb Frederick of the Erie Times-News on the exhibit, “Visions from Death Row,” currently being displayed at Schuster Gallery. The article appears in today’s (1-24) ET-N. Rick Diz, associate professor and chairperson of the environmental science and engineering department, did an interview with channel 12-WICU on a new partnership between the department an Infectech, a company in Sharon, Pa., to develop a product that inexpensively makes hydrogen.
The Faculty Research Committee announces the availability of applications for Faculty Research Grants. Grants are available to all full-time Gannon faculty and professional library staff. Grants usually range from $500 to $4,000 (but can be for more) and may be used to cover the costs of a research project such as equipment, travel (30 cents/mile), assistants (minimum wage $5.15 or greater if justified), and fees. The project should be completed within two years and must be research-oriented. The grants are for faculty research only. They cannot be used to support advanced degree study or student projects. Preference is given to first-time applicants. Previous recipients must have progress reports for earlier projects on file with the committee chair. Applications must be clearly written and jargon should be limited. Also, if a project requires student assistants, make sure it is clear what the faculty member`s role is in the project. Applications (rev. 12/00) are available from Carolynn Masters, Ph.D., RN, committee chair, e-mail: masters004@gannon.edu or at: http://walleye.gannon.edu/depts/faculty/. Applications must be received by the chairperson no later than 4:30 p.m. March 9.
Nash Library is sponsoring a Brown Bag Lunch on Friday, Feb. 18 from 12-1 p.m. in the Founder’s Room (3^rd Floor) of Nash Library. The guest speaker will be Dr. Kenneth G. McCurdy of the Community Counseling Program of the Gannon Psychology Department speaking on “The Importance of Play in our Lives." All are welcome; light refreshments will be served.

The office of New Student Services asks faculty and staff to encourage students to apply for positions as summer 2005 orientation advisors. Applications are available in the New Student Services office and are due by Jan. 28. For more information call ext. 7596.