Under the Arch

ENROLLMENT TOPS 4,100 TO REACH HIGHEST LEVEL IN 15 YEARS

Total enrollment at Gannon University this fall is the largest since 1992, with 4,134 students enrolled for the 2007-2008 Academic Year. The enrollment includes, but is not limited to: 613 first-year students, 83 transfer students, and 1,405 graduate students, which is Gannon’s largest graduate student enrollment ever.

“Over the past six years, the University’s total enrollment has grown by more than 700 students. Our faculty and staff’s commitment to providing an excellent intellectual and professional education, as well as our consistent top-tier national rankings by U.S. News & World Report as a Best Value university in the “Great Schools, Great Prices” category have helped to enhance and promote our academic quality and affordability,” said Antoine M. Garibaldi, Ph.D., President.

The 2007 freshman class includes 613 students, which marks the third consecutive year the first-year class has topped 600 students. The average grade point average of the 2007 Freshman Class is 3.43 and includes a record number of high school valedictorians (35) and three salutatorians.

In addition, 46 freshmen have been accepted into Gannon’s Honors Program; their average high school grade point average is 4.06 and their average SAT score is 1231.

The diversity among Gannon’s students is also increasing. Over the last three years, Gannon’s first-year minority students have increased by 90 percent from 40 freshmen in the Fall of 2004 to 76 freshmen in the Fall of 2007. The 2007 freshman class hails from 21 states and territories, compared with 15 states last year. There is also a record number of (284) new graduate international students this fall.

“The Gannon community is very excited about the University’s continuous growth and the increased diversity of our students. The University is committed to recruiting high quality students who will not only excel at Gannon academically, but will also grow personally, and spiritually,” said Terry Kizina, Gannon's Director of Admissions.

Gannon’s freshman to sophomore retention rate of 81%, and the University’s 14:1 faculty-student ratio are both significantly higher than the national averages. Gannon offers more than 75 strong bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degree programs, including a DPT in Physical Therapy, a Ph.D. in Counseling Psychology and a new Ph.D. in Organizational Learning and Leadership, the first and only degree of its kind in the region.

RECENT NEWS AND HIGHLIGHTS

News of interest on and around campus...

Special thanks to Gannon colleagues for their assistance with media interview requests. Doug Zimmerman, director of Student Living, did an interview with Tricia Wood-DeMarco of the Erie Times-News. Zimmerman discussed what is expected of students living in off campus housing, in terms of being good neighbors to those living around them. David A. Nordquest, Ph.D., assistant professor of philosophy, did an interview with WSEE-channel 35 on his Constitution Day lecture on James Madison.
Offer your congratulations to Maria L. Garase, chair of the social service department and assistant professor of criminal justice, was recently awarded the Emerging Scholar Award from the Northeastern Association of Criminal Justice Sciences (NEACJS). The Emerging Scholar Award is given in recognition of outstanding scholarly contributions to the advancement of criminal justice within the first five years of a professional career. She was selected from a pool of eligible candidates from 10 U.S. states, 6 Canadian provinces, and Washington, DC. At the conclusion of the meeting she was elected to the Executive Board of the Association. She will hold the office of Secretary until June, 2009. She received this award and the executive board position at the NEACJS meeting at Roger Williams University, in Bristol, R.I., in June.
Show your school spirit: Faculty and staff will be required to pick up, in advance, tickets for Saturday night’s football game against Mercyhurst College. Faculty and staff (with Gannon ID) are entitled to two free tickets to the game, which will be played Saturday at 7 p.m. at Gannon University Field. Tickets can be picked up at the Waldron Center front desk.
Crisis Communications update: The University has implemented new technology mechanisms in order to communicate more efficiently and effectively in the event that a crisis or emergency situation should occur on or near Gannon’s campus. Please go to the Gannon portal and register to receive emergency notification alerts and updates. You may choose to receive emergency alert text messages via your cellular phone, or you may choose to receive a voice mail message via your cellular or landline (home) phone. When you log onto the Gannon portal, you will find under GU Announcements, an Emergency Notification Setup channel with simple instructions. Please register to receive emergency notices as soon as possible. As a reminder, the University’s Crisis Communications Plan is available for your review at www.gannon.edu/pr under the faculty/staff resources link and at www.gannon.edu/crisis.

CAMPUS EVENTS

Thursday, September 20 – Gathering in Praise International Prayer of Peace: Ecumenical prayer service beginning at 11 a.m. in the Yehl Room.
Friday, September 21 – Lunch-n-Learn: The speaker will be Mark Jubulis, Ph.D., assistant professor, political science program. His topic will be “Substantially Catholic: Bringing Catholic Issues into the Classroom.” Offered at 12 p.m. in the Old Main Boardroom.
Friday, September 28 – Liberal Studies Forum: The Liberal Studies Status Report will be discussed. The forum is open to all students, faculty, and staff and will be held at 3 p.m. in the Yehl Room. For more information, call Penny Smith, Ph.D., at ext. 7748.
Tuesday, October 2 – Graduate and Professional School Fair: 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the Yehl Room.
“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-Tuesday, September 17-18 – American Council on Education Board of Directors meetings. Thursday, September 20 – Sr. Thea Bowman Black Catholic Educational Foundation Board of Directors Meeting; student hour. Saturday, September 22 – Summit on Minority Health Disparities; Gannon vs. Mercyhurst football game.

CURRENT BIRTHDAYS

Chris Dubbs. Donna Skelly. David Horton. Supawadee Lee. Ryan Pschigoda. Michael Caulfield. Frank Yohe. Lawrence Morgan. Lavanya Devdas. Mary Jo Geertson. Tammy Weary. Thomas Comstock. Berwyn Moore. Mary Jo Hess. Rebecca Willow. Greg Mello. Edward Rogers. Terrance Hoover. Catherine Gillespie. David Blaetz. Michelle Costello. Carol Perry. Antoine Garibaldi. Claudia Mosso. Elisa Konieczko. Patrick Headley. Mitchell Pittsenbarger. John Onorato. Shannon Deets. Margaret Horne. Thomas Hudson. Ronald Cuzzola. Carolynn Masters. Edna Macereti. Ruth Gehly. Jeremy Cannell. Daniel Balko. Dennis Fletcher. Patricia Pollifrone. Bernadette Carrig. Theresa Vitolo. Renee Foradori.

PICTURE OF THE WEEK

Gannon rallies past rival Mercyhurst College: Gannon’s Chad Wynter (3) battles an unidentified Laker for the ball during the Knights’ 2-1, come-from-behind win at Mercyhurst last week. The Knights trailed 1-0 at the intermission, and Wynter scored the game winner seven minutes, 38 seconds into overtime. After a road win yesterday at Northwood, Gannon is still undefeated (6-0-0) on the young season.