Jennifer Miller

Claudia Gage

Jennifer Miller and Claudia Gage are the student speakers at Youngstown State University’s Spring Commencement this Saturday, May 7, in Beeghly Center on campus.

Miller, who is receiving a bachelor’s degree in Chemistry, will speak at the morning ceremony, which begins at 9:30 a.m. Gage, who receives a bachelor’s degree in Theater Studies, speaks at the afternoon ceremony, which starts at 2:30 p.m.

Gage, who has minors in Creative Writing and Photography and also a Certificate in Nonprofit Leadership, is a Leslie H. Cochran University Scholar and has made the Dean’s List every semester. She studied abroad at the University of Winchester in Winchester, England, during Spring 2014 semester. Her publication credits include a poem published in The Penguin Review and photography published in The Jenny Magazine. She was selected as a winner of the PHOTO ’15 Contest at the Multiple Exposures Gallery in Alexandria, Va. She was also selected to participate in the Drama Masterclass at the 2014 National Collegiate Honors Council Conference in Denver. She is a member of Alpha Psi Omega, Phi Kappa Phi, Sigma Alpha Lambda and Dance Club, having held office with Alpha Psi Omega for two years. She spent two summers as a theater specialist with Camp JCC at the Youngstown Jewish Community Center.

After graduation, Gage will complete an internship in the education department of Lexington Children’s Theater in Lexington, Ky. She hopes to pursue a full-time career in educational theater.

Miller, who has a minor in mathematics, is a member of the STEM Leadership Society, Choose Ohio First Scholarship Program, and the YSU American Chemical Society. She began researching with Dr. Matthias Zeller her freshman year and continued on a research-focused path. She worked with Zeller for the next two years, then completed her senior research project with Dr. Brian Leskiw this past year. During the summers, she participated in two National Science Foundation funded Research Experience for Undergraduate Programs, one at the University of Connecticut in 2014 and one at Texas A&M University in 2015. She has presented both her YSU and National Science Foundation research at multiple regional and national conferences, including the National American Chemical Society Conference. Miller has worked at the YSU Center for Student Progress and the Chemistry Department, has volunteered at many campus events, and has worked in the community with Habitat for Humanity, the Youngstown Neighborhood Development Corporation, AwakenYo Ministries, and others. She is the recipient of the YSU Pin Award, Hypercube Scholars Award and Pittsburgh Society of Analytical Chemists Award.

Miller will now pursue a PhD in Physical Chemistry at Pennsylvania State University on a full university fellowship. She then plans to pursue a career in academia.

Nishani Cicilson

When Nishani Cicilson left her home country of Suriname eight years ago with a swimming scholarship to Youngstown State University, she never guessed it would be her steppingstone to a doctorate degree.

Cicilson, who earned a bachelor’s degree in Exercise Science from YSU in 2013, graduates this Saturday, May 7, with a doctorate in Physical Therapy. Spring Commencement in Beeghly Center on campus is 9:30 a.m. and 2:30 p.m.

While at YSU, Cicilson has enjoyed a range of hands-on volunteer and clinical experience across the region.

She practiced physical therapy as a volunteer at YSU’s Midlothian Free Health Clinic, serving low-income uninsured and underinsured patients. Clinical experiences followed, including work at an outpatient cardiopulmonary rehab center in Girard and nine weeks in acute care at Trumbull Memorial Hospital in Warren. Now, she’s serving students with minor and severe disabilities in the Mahoning County Schools.

“What I really love about physical therapy is that you don’t have to work in just one setting,” she said. “There are so many options. I like pediatrics, and I’m hoping to find work in the Youngstown area.”

Growing up in a small South American country north of Brazil, Cicilson was a talented competitive swimmer and earned a full-ride scholarship that paid for her undergraduate studies at YSU. She competed with the Lady Penguins Swimming and Diving Team for four years. “When I was swimming, I set a personal record in the 50-yard freestyle, but the team is doing so well, they’ve surpassed it. I think that’s a good thing.”

Her YSU swim coach, Matt Anderson, trained her to qualify for competition in the World Swimming Championships her sophomore year, representing Suriname. She swam the best long course in her career at that event. “It was an amazing experience and I’m so grateful,” she said. “I couldn’t have done it without him.”

Cicilson’s parents still live in Suriname, and her sister is a software developer in Amsterdam. She has worked part-time as a student employee at YSU’s Andrews Student Recreation and Wellness Center since 2013 and continues to swim for fitness and recreation at the YSU’s Beeghly Center pool. “It’s a lifelong activity,” she said. “I really enjoy the Beeghly pool, but when I graduate I’ll definitely find somewhere else to swim!”

Kyle Myers in a lab in YSU’s Moser Hall.

Kyle Myers likes getting his hands dirty, working with practical science – that’s what he enjoyed about Youngstown State University’s new PhD program in Material Science and Engineering.

On Saturday, May 7, the Sharpsville, Pa., man will make history as the first to earn a PhD at YSU. Myers will participate in the university’s 9:30 a.m. Spring Commencement at Beeghly Center on the YSU campus; an afternoon ceremony is set for 2:30 p.m.

Myers came to YSU for graduate school with a bachelor’s degree in Chemistry from Pennsylvania State University. He earned a master’s at YSU, also in Chemistry, and was accepted by several PhD programs, including Auburn, Alfred and Clemson universities.

“I chose YSU because no other school could offer the financial support I got here. It’s like a job, really,” Myers said, explaining that he received a research stipend and a partial tuition reimbursement. “I’m 100 percent glad that I stayed here. YSU insists on real-world experience, and the opportunities have been tremendous.”

Throughout his graduate and PhD studies, Myers worked as a research assistant for Fireline, a Youngstown manufacturer of ceramic products. His research focused on creating composites, using 3D printing technology, that combine ceramics and metals into materials that function well in extremely high temperatures. His career goal is to find an engineering position in private industry.

“Kyle has always shown himself to be an exceptional student, so I’m not surprised that he finished first,” said Chemistry Professor Clovis Linkous, the PhD program coordinator. “We are all feeling proud and excited for him.”

YSU’s PhD program in Material Science and Engineering, which currently has nine candidates, was created in 2012 in the College of Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics. While it is the university’s first and only PhD program, YSU has two other doctorate degree-level programs – the Beeghly College of Education offers an EdD, a doctorate in education, and the Physical Therapy Department offers a DPT, a doctorate in Physical Therapy.

Stephen P. Harvey

Stephen P. Harvey is celebrating two major life events this month – the recent release of his debut jazz record album, titled “Suite Childhood,” and his graduation from Youngstown State University with a master’s degree in Jazz Studies.

The new YSU alumnus, a native of Rochester, Pa., composed and arranged seven original jazz selections to create “Suite Childhood,” which was mastered and recorded by Jack Ciarniello, part-time faculty in YSU’s Dana School of Music. The YSU Jazz Ensemble and other Dana School of Music students performed for Harvey’s album and presented the music live at an album release concert earlier this month.

Harvey began his undergraduate studies at Seton Hill University in Greensburg, Pa., with plans to become a music teacher, but a growing appreciation for jazz caused him to change his plans. After earning a bachelor’s degree in Music Education in 2014, Harvey said, he decided to pursue an advanced degree in Jazz Studies. He took the advice of Seton Hill Professor Ted DiSanti, a YSU alum, applied to YSU and was accepted.

“YSU has been the most excellent choice for me,” he said, giving special credit to Dana Professor David Morgan. “I could never have finished the album or the degree without Dave. He’s an amazing professor.”

Harvey’s ultimate goal is to earn a doctorate in jazz composition and to teach jazz composition on the college level, but he’ll take some time off to raise funds for the next stage of his education. He’s searching for a music teaching position in a public school district.

“Suite Childhood” features cover art by Michael Hardy, a YSU art major. The recording is self-published under SPHarvey Music and available for purchase at on this website.

Alexandra Nannicola

Youngstown State University graduate Alexandra Nannicola has been named Ohio’s top elementary school principal by the Ohio Association of Elementary School Principals.

“Given that the number of elementary principals in Ohio number in the thousands, this recognition is a real tribute to Ali and her professional accomplishments as a principal,” said Chuck Vergon, professor and chair of Educational Foundations, Research, Technology and Leadership at YSU.

Nannicola, principal at Champion Central Elementary School in Trumbull County, will accept the award as Ohio’s 2016 National Distinguished Principal at the OAESP Professional Conference June 17 in Columbus. The recognition will continue in October, when Nannicola travels to Washington, D.C., for two days of activities recognizing and honoring top elementary and middle-level educators selected by state associations nationwide.

Nannicola earned two degrees from YSU – a bachelor’s degree in teacher education in 1998 and a graduate degree in Educational Administration in 2004 – and later earned school principal and superintendent licenses. She began her career as a teacher and reading facilitator in the East Palestine School District in Columbiana County, advancing to assistant principal and principal there before joining the Champion schools in 2012.

Julie Davis, OAESA executive director, said Nannicola was nominated and selected by her fellow principals through a statewide search. “Passion is the word used by staff members, colleagues, parents and community members alike in describing Mrs. Nannicola,” Davis said. “She is a warrior seeking change for her students, looking for solutions to make things better.”

Vergon said Nannicola has continued her involvement in the university. She is a member of YSU’s Aspiring School Leaders Advisory Committee, he said, reviewing programs to ensure they incorporate the most recent developments and best practices in the field, and she also regularly serves as a resource for educators pursuing degrees at YSU.

The Business Leader Program in Youngstown State University’s Williamson College of Business Administration has graduated its first group of students, and they are now advancing to careers at a variety of prestigious companies.

Students are selectively recruited out of high school to the Business Leader Program and are admitted directly to their business major of choice. The program provides students with a variety of opportunities to increase their knowledge of business, accelerate their involvement with the business community, and enhance their professional preparation.

Students from the 2012-13 class who graduated this month include:

Kayla Cerimele of Canfield graduated Summa Cum Laude with plans to begin YSU’s Master of Accountancy program this fall. She will begin her professional career as a staff accountant with Ernst & Young in Cleveland in September 2017. During her time at YSU, Cerimele was involved with Beta Gamma Sigma and Beta Alpha Psi. She attended the National Beta Gamma Sigma Conference in Orlando, Fla.; participated in the Ernst & Young Emerging Leaders Program in May 2014; and completed an accounting internship with Ernst & Young’s Cleveland branch in spring 2015.

Alyssa Clark of Poland will begin a full time position as an accounting rotational program member at Progressive Insurance in Mayfield Heights this summer. Clark was honored with a Summa Cum Laude distinction at graduation and was also a member with Beta Gamma Sigma, Phi Kappa Phi, and the Institute of Management Accountants. She completed an accounting internship with Progressive Insurance this past spring.

Josh Chordas of Cortland, a transfer student from Ohio State University, has been involved with the Management Information Systems Association. Chordas has global learning experiences with the London Summer Program. He also completed a MIS internship with Catullo’s Prime Meats in Boardman. He graduated Summa Cum Laude.

Leah Finnerty of Poland was hired as a staff accountant at Cohen and Company in Youngstown. She will take the Master of Taxation program at the University of Akron this coming fall. Finnerty was a member of Beta Alpha Psi and Beta Gamma Sigma and attended the National Beta Gamma Sigma Conference in Orlando, Fla. She also was recognized with Summa Cum Laude distinction at graduation. Finnerty completed tax and accounting internships with JFS Wealth Advisors during the spring of 2015 and 2016.

Lauren Paolucci of Austintown started her career with American Income Life Insurance. She graduated Magna Cum Laude and received a Certificate in Nonprofit Leadership.

Ann Phillips of New Springfield was the first student to leave the WCBA Business Leader Program, graduating in December 2015. She will be furthering her education with the new Master of Accountancy Program at YSU. Phillips graduated with a Summa Cum Laude distinction and was a member of Phi Kappa Phi and the Institute of Management Accountants. During her time at YSU, Phillips held internships in the YSU Office of Financial Aid and Scholarships and FNB Corp. in Hermitage, Pa.

Bryan Schiraldi of Lowellville has accepted a position as an accounting associate with Packer Thomas in Youngstown. He graduated Summa Cum Laude. Schiraldi was a member of Beta Gamma Sigma and participated in the Beta Gamma Sigma National Conference in Orlando, Fla. He also held internships with Packer Thomas and NYO Property Group. He will also be returning to YSU to obtain an MBA.

To be selected for the Business Leaders Program as a freshman, students must have a 3.5 high school GPA or higher as well as an ACT score of at least 25 or SAT score of at least 1150. Once selected for the program, students will be admitted directly to their business major of choice.

For more information, call 330-941-3064.

Amanda Macinga, left, and Nicole Pavlansky.

Amanda Macinga of Struthers and Nicole Pavlansky of Boardman, accounting majors in the Williamson College of Business Administration at Youngstown State University, have been selected to receive the Institute of Management Accountants Ohio Regional Council Scholarship.

The IMA scholarships are given at both the undergraduate and graduate student levels and are based on academic merit, extent of IMA participation, and strength of outside recommendations. The scholarships are awarded to any student with an accounting major who is enrolled at an Ohio college/university.

Macinga received a $2,500 scholarship. She completed her sophomore year at YSU and is involved in the WCBA Business Leader Program and Enactus group. She is doing work with the campus Emerging Leader Program and will be chapter secretary for IMA this coming Fall. Macinga also plans to obtain a master’s degree and become a Certified Management Accountant .

“My participation in the Institute of Management Accountants will help me advance my career goals in numerous ways,” she said. “I will gain invaluable knowledge of the accounting field and further develop my professional development skills. I am honored to have been chosen as a recipient of the Ohio Regional Council IMA Scholarship, which will greatly assist me in furthering my education in the accounting field.”

Pavlansky received a $1,500 scholarship. She just completed her junior year at YSU. Pavlansky plans to earn her Certified Management Accountant certification and become a Certified Public Accountant. She is a member of the IMA and Beta Alpha Psi. Her volunteer work includes raising funds to supply clean water in Uganda.

“I’m very grateful to be one of the recipients of the IMA Ohio Regional Council Scholarship,” she said. “I have enjoyed participating in IMA activities such as the mentorship program, and I’m looking forward to engaging in other activities in the future. The scholarship will help pay for my tuition and books as I finish my senior year.”

The IMA is a worldwide association of accountants and financial professionals who have careers in business. The association has a membership of more than 80,000 professionals and students.

From the left, Jamie Apa, Grace Thayer, Jasmine Harrison, Kyle Marshall, Marsha Drabenstadt and Sandra Sterchi, in the main lobby of Akron Children’s Hospital.

Six Youngstown State University nursing students are working as full-time interns at Akron Children’s Hospital this summer as part of the Assuring Success with a Commitment to Enhance Nurse Diversity program.

ASCEND focuses on recruiting traditionally underrepresented groups in the nursing profession. Development of the program began two years ago as a way to increase diversity in the registered nursing workforce at Akron Children’s Hospital.

YSU senior nursing students participating in the intern program are Jamie Apa of Brookfield, Ohio; Marsha Drabenstadt of Struthers, Ohio; Jasmine Harrison of Youngstown, Ohio; Kyle Marshall of Canfield, Ohio; Sandra Sterchi of Girard, Ohio; and Grace Thayer of Campbell, Ohio. The 10-week internship includes a $5,000 stipend.

“Our YSU nursing faculty are very grateful for our partnership with Akron Children’s Hospital and for this amazing opportunity for our students,” said Nancy Wagner, chair of the YSU Department of Nursing. “The selection process was competitive and those who were chosen by a faculty committee met specific criteria. They all have a passion for pediatric nursing and are very excited about the experience.”

The students work with mentors on a pediatric unit: two students in pediatric intensive care and neonatal intensive care/special care nurseries at the Akron Children’s main campus and four students in the pediatric emergency department, special care nurseries and inpatient units at the Mahoning Valley campus.

The program provides professional development opportunities and the potential for future employment in a pediatric hospital setting. Experiences include hands-on nurse related activities using case studies and scenario simulation. Students are expected to work three, 12-hour shifts and also participate in a 4-hour professional day every week with topics focusing on professionalism, priority setting, exploring the nurse roles in pediatric health, communication skills, teamwork, delegation, family centered care delivery model, cultural competence, interview skills and resume development.

“The idea behind the program is to potentially hire these students into the hospital’s nurse tech program should there be a fit at the end of their internships and as a way to springboard their nursing careers,” said Nancy Mosca, director of Nursing Professional Practice at Akron Children’s Hospital. “Diversifying our staff remains a priority for the hospital.”

Jasmyne Huckaba

Jasmyne Huckaba, a double major in psychology and sociology at Youngstown State University, has been selected to receive the prestigious Gilman International Scholarship to study abroad.

Huckaba is studying in Chiang Mai, Thailand, this summer.

She is the 17^th YSU student since 2012 to be selected as a Gilman Scholar, receiving more than $50,000 in funding in total.

The scholarship is sponsored by the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. Gilman scholars receive up to $5,000 to apply towards their study abroad or internship program costs.

The program aims to diversify the students who study and intern abroad and the countries and regions where they go. Students receiving a Federal Pell Grant from two- and four-year institutions who will be studying abroad or participating in a career-oriented international internship for academic credit are eligible to apply. Scholarship recipients have the opportunity to gain a better understanding of other cultures, countries, languages, and economies — making them better prepared to assume leadership roles within government and the private sector.

“Study abroad is a special experience for every student who participates,” said Benjamin Gilman, who retired in 2002 after serving in the U.S. House of Representatives for 30 years and chairing the House Foreign Relations Committee.

“Living and learning in a vastly different environment of another nation not only exposes our students to alternate views, but also adds an enriching social and cultural experience. It also provides our students with the opportunity to return home with a deeper understanding of their place in the world, encouraging them to be a contributor, rather than a spectator in the international community.”

Allan Goodman, president of the Institute of International Education, added: “International education is one of the best tools for developing mutual understanding and building connections between people from different countries. It is critical to the success of American diplomacy and business, and the lasting ties that Americans make during their international studies are important to our country in times of conflict as well as times of peace.”

Andrew Morgan

Andrew Morgan of Fowler, Ohio, a senior at Youngstown State University, has been selected to receive a scholarship from Tau Beta Pi engineering honor society.

Morgan, the son of Scott and Helen Morgan, will receive a cash award of $2,000 for his senior year of study at YSU. He is majoring in Electrical Engineering (Computer Digital Option) and Computer Science, with a minor in Mathematics. A graduate of Mathews High School in Vienna, Ohio, Morgan plans to graduate from YSU in May 2017.

He also was named a Goldwater Scholar this year and is a member of Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society and the Pi Mu Epsilon National Math Honor Society. He is active in YSU Student Government, Academic Senate and YSU Honors College and is a first-year engineering teaching assistant.

Tau Beta Pi Scholarships are awarded on a competitive basis of high scholarship, campus leadership and service, and promise of future contributions to the engineering profession.

Tau Beta Pi is the world’s largest engineering society.

Dominika Lackova, left, of Bratislava, Slovakia, and Corey Patrick of Struthers are Monus Fellows.

Dominika Lackova and Corey Patrick, senior business majors in the Williamson College of Business Administration at Youngstown State University, have been selected as the inaugural Monus Entrepreneurship Fellows for the 2016 summer and fall.

The Monus Entrepreneurship Fellows program, in partnership with the Youngstown Business Incubator, provides students interested in entrepreneurship with the opportunity to gain hands-on experience with local entrepreneurs. The Monus Entrepreneurship Fellowship Program is funded through the Nathan & Frances Monus Entrepreneurship Fund.

Lackova is working with Vantage Solutions in Youngstown. “Vantage Solutions would like to welcome Dominika,” said Paul Burgoyne, principal at Vantage Solutions. “She is a spirited individual who brings an aggressive attitude and youthful presence to our team. Our hopes are to leverage her current skill set and build out more applied skills as she helps us grow our product, REACH.”

Patrick is working with 3D PrinterWorks, LLC. Ben Kilar, president and co-founder, said that, at first, he didn’t know what to expect. “That changed the first day Corey came to the office; he immediately ‘took over’ marketing for our business,” he said. “Corey is extremely knowledgeable and passionate of what he does. We expect to see sales to rise in the following weeks, because of Corey’s techniques.”

Betty Jo Licata, WCBA dean, said the college is pleased to be able to invest funds that support the entrepreneurship goals of our students.

“We are excited to partner with YBI to create a unique opportunity for our students to work with the Youngstown Business Incubator and its tenants,” she said. “This experience will enable the Monus Entrepreneurship Fellows to learn first-hand what it takes to start and grow a successful business venture.”

Student bios
Dominika Lackova of Bratislava, Slovakia, is a senior Business Economics major with a minor in Entrepreneurship. She is a member of Omicron Delta Epsilon, the International Honor Society for Economics, and a member of the Women’s Tennis team at YSU. She hopes to one day be an entrepreneur, and this opportunity to work with entrepreneurs and the YBI will provide her with many skills to do so.

Corey Patrick of Struthers is a senior Finance and Marketing double major, Entrepreneurship minor. Patrick recently completed a Financial Advisor Internship this past summer with Edward Jones Investments. He formerly served as the President of Enactus, a student entrepreneurial organization on campus, as well as a WCBA Representative on the Student Government Association. He is a member of the WCBA Student Leadership Council, captain of the YSU Yacht Club, CEO of Penguin Creations, a student-run 3D Printing non-profit business, and vice president of Programs of Sigma Tau. He recently finished his third semester as a Beeghly Fellow. He aspires to work in real estate development upon graduation.

Members of the 2015-16 YSU Moot Court team.

Youngstown State University’s Intercollegiate Moot Court program ranks 11^th in the nation, above schools such as Duke University, University of Virginia and University of Chicago.

The rankings were compiled by the American Moot Court Association and are based on the average win total of teams over a three-year period.

YSU ranks between California State University-Fullerton (10th) and Morehouse College and University of Texas-Dallas (tied for 12^th). Virginia is ranked 16^th, with Duke 19^th and Chicago 23^rd. Patrick Henry College in Virginia was ranked No. 1.

YSU’s Moot Court Team has qualified for the national tournament for the past seven years. Last fall, students competed in the Midwest Regional Moot Court Tournament in Wooster, Ohio. Ten regional tournaments with 360 teams were held throughout the United States. Only 80 teams were selected to go on to nationals, including two from YSU. At the national tournament in Long Beach, Calif., one of the YSU teams ranked among the top eight in the country.

The team is coached by Paul Sracic, chair, Politics and International Relations.

The purpose of the American Collegiate Moot Court Association is to educate undergraduate students about the American legal system, American jurisprudence, and the work of American attorneys. A Moot Court competition is a simulated legal argument before hypothetical appellate courts.

Participants at 2016 MathFest are, from the left, Angela Spalsbury, chair of the Department of Mathematics and Statistics, students Emily Hoopes, Sam Rakocy, Gabbie Van Scoy, Elise Eckman, Crystal Mackey, Zack While, Leah Bayer, Monica Busser, Natalie Halavick, and faculty members Tom Wakefield, Alicia Prieto Langarica and George Yates.

Youngstown State University mathematics students continued their winning ways at MathFest 2016 in Columbus, earning two awards for excellence.

Monica Busser of Hubbard, who presented research titled “Combinatorial Number Theory,” and Gabbie Van Scoy of Lisbon, whose research is titled :Math Models of Muscle Formation, earned awards of excellence in student exposition and research. Van Scoy received the SIAM award for best exposition or research in applied mathematics.

This is the second consecutive year that Busser and Van Scoy have won awards at the national event.

The YSU team has historically been one of the most successful at the annual event. YSU won its first award in 1989 and has won at least one award every year since, except in 1992 and 1994. YSU students won a record number of awards in 2013 with six. The team won five awards in 2005, 2006 and 2015.

“This is an amazing achievement of our students,” said Alicia Prieto Langarica, associate professor. “They continue to win more awards than any other school and serve as examples at this national meeting of the outstanding students at YSU, the STEM College and the Department of Mathematics and Statistics.”

MathFest is the annual summer meeting of the Mathematical Association of America and Pi Mu Epsilon. In all, nine students represented YSU and seven gave oral presentations on their research projects.

Other YSU students making presentations were:

* Zack While, Austintown, “Identifying Cheaters in IATs.”

* Crystal Mackey, Bristolville, Ohio, “Traffic Simulation using Burgers Equation with External Forces.”

* Natalie Halavick, Vienna, Ohio, “Predicting Crime in Youngstown, Ohio.”

* Emily Hoopes, Warren, “Representations of Heisenberg Groups.”

* Sam Rakocy, North Canton, Ohio, “IBM to Find Fastest Driving Route. “

Leah Bayer of Brookfield, Ohio, and Elise Eckman of Poland, Ohio, also represented YSU. In addition, Bayer and Eckman, along with YSU student Zack While, were recently selected as CURM students for research projects at YSU through a grant under the direction of Prieto Langarica.

Tom Wakefield, associate professor; Angela Spalsbury, professor and chair; Prieto Langarica; and George Yates, professor, attended MathFest with the students. Faculty who advised students included Wakefield; Prieto Langarica; Thomas Madsen, assistant professor; Eric Breimer from Siena College, Cynthia Flores from CSU Channel Islands; Bruce Landman and Abdollah Khodkar from Univ. of West Georgia.

Front row, from the left, are Michael Steensen; Fabio Basil; Fadi Chammas; Mousa Kassis, director of the WCBA Ohio Export Internship Program; Briana Scott; Stephanie Wood; and Betty Jo Licata, Dean, YSU Williamson College of Business Administration.
Back row from the left, Tiffani Pike, Yana Flider, Connie Buck, Nichole DeSantis, Daniel Belinky, and Michael Osborn.

Eleven business students, nine from Youngstown State University and two from the University of Akron, recently completed full-time paid exporting internships as a part of the Ohio Export Internship Program.

The program is offered through the YSU Williamson College of Business Administration in partnership with the Ohio Development Services Agency and Ohio State University Fisher College of Business.

The students were honored at a special ceremony at the Ohio Statehouse in Columbus.

Students were welcomed by David Goodman, director, and Daryl Hennesey, assistant chief, business service division, of the Ohio Development Services Agency. Other speakers included YSU President Jim Tressel and WCBA Dean, Betty Jo Licata. Mousa Kassis, director of the WCBA Ohio Export Internship Program, presented each of the students.

The following YSU students and companies participated:

* Daniel Belinky, a senior business economics major with Certificate in Enterprise Resource Planning, worked with MakerGear LLC, a 3D Printer manufacturer in Beachwood, Ohio. The factory’s machines are built locally and shipped globally.

* Connie Buck, a senior marketing management major, worked as an intern with Haltec Corporation in Salem, Ohio. Haltec is the World’s leading supplier of tire management and inflation solutions. Connie’s internship with Haltec has been extended through the fall semester.

* Fabio Bassil, a junior international business major, was employed at Millco, Corporation in Salem, Ohio. Millco is a provider of modernized plastic pulverizer machine, which has a capacity of production that exceeds the industry average by four folds. Fabio will relocate to Germany for one year, were he will continue to promote Millco in Germany & Europe

* Fadi Chammas, a senior international business major, worked at Quaker City Castings (Korff Holdings, LLC), Salem, Ohio. They are a no-bake sand foundry that produces a wide variety of iron castings and steel castings for various industrial applications.

* Nichole DeSantis, a senior marketing management major and a minor in international business, was employed with ARS Recycling Systems, LLC, in Lowellville, Ohio. ARS Recycling Systems is an industry leader in the design and manufacture of Abrasive Recycling Machines, Dust Collectors and Rapid Deployment℠ Lift Platforms. Nichole’s internship has been extended through the fall semester.

* Stephanie Wood, a summer 2016 graduate with a financial management major and international business minor, worked as an intern at TEGAM, Inc., in Geneva, Ohio. TEGAM, Inc. specializes in the design, manufacture and support of a wide variety of test, measurement and calibration instruments with technical representatives and distributors in over 40 countries. Wood has accepted a full-time job with TEGAM as a result of her performance during the internship.

* Tiffani Pike, a senior financial management major and a minor in international business, worked with Gia Russa (Summer Garden Food Manufacturing) in Boardman, Ohio. Gia Russa is the maker of the world’s most sought after pasta sauces and Italian specialties.

* Yana Flider, a senior international business major, was employed with Blackwood Pet Food, LLC, a globally recognized developer and brand of pet food in Lisbon, Ohio. Blackwood Pet Food works exclusively with independent pet stores and online distributors. Blackwood Food extended Yana’s internship through the fall semester.

* Briana Scott, a senior accounting major, worked with Rain Drop Products, LLC, Ashland, Ohio. Rain Drop Products transforms imagination into new dimensions in water play with dynamic custom designed water parks that deliver adventure, visual excitement and imaginative fun. Rain Drop Products offers a full line of water play equipment including above ground and below ground spray ground/splash park features, slides and structures.

The following University of Akron students participated:

* Michael Osborn, a senior international business major at the University of Akron, worked as an intern at Cox-Colvin & Associates in Plain City, Ohio. Cox-Colvin & Associates provides experienced and capable project teams, high-quality work products, solution oriented approaches, and the creative use of technologies to their customers in the environmental industry.

* Michael Steensen, a senior international business major at the University of Akron, was employed at LF Star Incorporated in Twinsburg, Ohio. L.J. Star Incorporated manufactures and provides an extensive line of process observation equipment — sight glasses, lights, sanitary fittings, and level gage instrumentation.

The YSU Williamson College of Business Administration and the OSU Fisher School of Business are the only two Ohio public universities to offer the program. Recently, the Ohio Export Internship Program won the President’s E-Award, the highest recognition any U.S. organization can receive for its contribution to the expansion of U.S. exports.

For more information on the Ohio Export Program, contact Kassis at YSU at 330-941-2415 or mhkassis@ysu.edu.

Students and alumni in Youngstown State University’s Musical Theater program travelling to Oslo, Norway for a conference include, from the left, Mia Colon, Emily Shipley, Angelique Tanner, Stefon Funderburke, Daniel Navabi, Makenzie Moorman and Connor Bezeredi.

Five students in the Musical Theater program at Youngstown State University are in Oslo, Norway, with a select group of other students from throughout the world to participate in the Musical Theatre Educators’ Alliance Conference.

“This is a remarkable opportunity and invaluable experience for our students to travel and perform at this level,” said Matthew Mazuroski, chair of the YSU Department of Theater and Dance. “It reflects the passion, talent and commitment of our students as well as the faculty and staff within the department.”

The students are Daniel Navabi, sophomore, Columbus, Ohio; Stefon Funderburke, junior, Farrell, Pa.; Mia Colon, sophomore, Youngstown; Angelique Tanner, junior, Waverly, Ohio; and Makenzie Moorman, sophomore, Piketon, Ohio. Two recent YSU alumni, Emily Shipley, Struthers, Ohio, and Connor Bezeredi, Salem, Ohio, will also participate.

YSU students competed for positions through an audition process, and were awarded five of the 18 open slots. Other students participating are from Singapore, Italy, Denmark, Norway and Australia, with only two additional U.S. schools represented – Shenandoah University and Florida Southern College.

Upon arrival, the students will rehearse for three days, and then perform a showcase for audiences and international casting directors. Students will perform both solo and group pieces in musical theater as well as featured dance pieces. In addition, they will attend a variety of master classes and rehearsals.

Musical Theater faculty member Nancy Wolfgang will accompanies the group and teach a masterclass.

The Musical Theatre Educators’ Alliance International was founded in 1999 as a means for teachers of young professional artists to come together and exchange ideas, methodologies, and solutions to common challenges in the academic settings of universities and conservatories. The organization has grown to worldwide status with member institutions spanning across the United States, Europe, Asia and Australia.

Rochelle Robinson

On the day she won her hard-fought battle to be the first woman and the first African American elected mayor of Douglasville, Ga., Rochelle Robinson felt a connection to civil rights pioneer Rosa Parks.

Her victory came on Dec. 1, 2015, the 60th anniversary of Parks’ history-making refusal to give up her seat on a segregated Alabama bus. “I cried when I realized the significance of that day,” Robinson recalled, “and I knew that I was standing on Rosa Parks’ shoulders. What a legacy!”

She took office a month later as mayor of the fast-growing bedroom community near Atlanta, population 35,000. Beating out an incumbent mayor with 62 percent of the vote was especially sweet for Robinson because she narrowly lost her first attempt to win the seat in 2011.

The former Rochelle Martin grew up on Youngstown’s South Side and enrolled at YSU in the early ‘80s with plans to become a nurse. Later, she changed her major to Communication and planned a broadcasting career with two classmates – Madonna Chism Pinkard, now communications director for WFMJ-TV in Youngstown, and Sharon North, a public relations manager for the city of Richmond, Va.

But the Central Intelligence Agency had other plans for Robinson. She was a senior and an Ohio Army National Guard veteran attending college on the GI Bill when she met CIA recruiters at a university job fair. A YSU cheerleader, longtime runner and gymnast, Robinson was well equipped for the physical rigors of CIA training, and she already had military security clearance.

Soon after, in 1986, she accepted a commission as a federal law enforcement officer, trained at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Centers and began an eight-year run with the CIA. Based in Washington, D.C., she traveled the world – including some time in Helsinki, Sweden, the one location she’s permitted to mention. She lived under an assumed name and was often out of contact with friends and family for months at a time. “I did some VIP security, that’s all I’m free to say,” she said.

All that changed in 1994 when Robinson visited a church in Atlanta to attend the christening of a friend’s infant and met a young pastor there. A year later, she moved to Georgia, left the CIA and married the pastor, the Rev. Mr. Jeff Robinson.

Following the example her mother had set for her while growing up in Youngstown, Robinson became involved as a volunteer in Douglasville, her new city of residence, joining numerous community boards and committees and eventually winning election to city council.

“I would say that it is phenomenal for me to be the first African American woman to be mayor, but it happened organically,” she said, explaining how years of community service helped her to develop wide-ranging support and recognition.

In her first nine months in office she helped fund a decorative street lighting program to beautify the downtown and advanced collaboration by combining the city and county community development offices. She met with city council members to insist that they stop bickering at public sessions and treat each other with respect – and so far, it’s working. ‘One council member asked me: ‘Are you the mama?’” she said. “Well I guess I am.”

In addition to her mayoral duties, Robinson and her husband have three children, all in their teens. Also an ordained minister, she co-pastors a church with him in nearby Rex, Ga.

(Previously published in YSU Magazine, Fall 2016.)

Timothy Womer ’80 AAS, ’82 BSAS

In the iconic 1960s film “The Graduate,” Dustin Hoffman’s character gets succinct career advice from an old family friend. He says:

“I want to say one word to you, just one word … Plastics.”

YSU grad Tim Womer loves that line. The two-time YSU mechanical engineering technology alumnus is a world-renowned expert in the field of plastics, specializing in the design of industrial-sized extrusion screws.

We’re not talking hardware store nuts and bolts. The screws Womer designs, and for which he holds multiple U.S. patents, are too large to fit in a typical business office.

Typically composed of metal and ranging in length from 5- to 40-feet, he says plasticizing screws are used to melt and mold plastic to make a wide range of products we use everyday, from water jugs and garbage bags to plumbing pipes and bottle caps.

“The screw is the heart of the machine,” he explains, “and most people don’t know that the region between Cleveland/Akron and New Castle, Pa. is the mecca of screws.”

The son of a coal miner and the first in his family to go to college, Womer came to YSU in the late 1970s as a non-traditional student, working full-time as a machinist while pursuing his bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering Technology. He remembers how department chair William O. Barsch, who has since retired, encouraged him to share his practical work experience in class. “He took an interest in me as a working student, and that’s the most memorable part of going to school here, having an adviser that I really connected with.”

Womer’s 40-year career included a succession of top positions with major plastics companies, most recently as corporate technology officer for the global Xaloy, Inc., until he formed his own consulting firm in 2010. But for founder and president of TWWomer & Associates LLC in Edinburg, Pa., being self-employed doesn’t mean semi-retirement.

“The industry won’t allow me to retire,” he says with a grin. “But I’m not complaining. Plastics has always intrigued me. I never get tired of it.” Womer’s phone is always ringing because he is one of only a dozen engineers in the world who can create custom designs for extrusion screws, and he has designed thousands of them.

His latest passion, and what he considers the most exciting development in plastics, is 3D printing. Womer has 17 active patents and three that are pending, two of which deal with 3D printing, and his company has a 3D consulting contract with the Oakridge National Laboratory in Tennessee, a massive U.S. Dept. of Energy lab. He helped the Oakridge lab to produce the first 3D printed automobiles for display at 2014 auto shows in Detroit and Chicago.

Womer travels frequently in the U.S. and around the world, speaking for technical seminars, lead training sessions and workshops, troubleshooting design and manufacturing problems. “It never stops,” he says.

Womer has a long list of awards and honors from the plastics industry, including induction into the Plastics Hall of Fame in 2012. He served as president of the Society of Plastics Engineers in 2006 and won it’s most prestigious honor the following year.

After hours, the YSU grad celebrates his German heritage by singing in the Pittsburgh and New Castle, Pa. Maennerchors, and he enjoys outdoor activities such as hunting and chopping firewood. Womer and his wife of 38 years, Barb, are parents of two adult children. Their son, Brock, is also employed as a plastics engineer; daughter Brianna graduated from YSU in May with a doctorate in Physical Therapy and expects to complete an MA in Biology next year.

(Previously published in YSU Magazine, Fall 2016.)

Ashley Anderson and three other volunteers jumped into the water to rescue refugees off the coast of Greece. Photo by Doug Kuntz

A 2007 graduate takes a break from her work as a United Nations consultant to feed and care for refugees.

Ashley Anderson stood on the rocky shore of the Greek island of Lesvos, peering toward the horizon in the predawn light, when she first caught sight of a boat. As the crowded vessel drew closer to land, she heard the refugees on board shouting and cheering with joy.

At that moment, the boat hit a jagged rock underwater, and the jubilant scene turned to chaos. The vessel crumbled and began to sink, tossing its 150 occupants into the sea. Ashley and three other volunteers plunged in, fully clothed, scrambling to rescue the babies and children first. More than once, she was pulled underwater by panicking victims and nearly drowned – but in the end, to the rescuers’ amazement, every one of the Syrian refugees on the boat survived.

That harrowing experience last December culminated the YSU graduate’s four-month mission as a humanitarian first-responder in Greece. Working with other volunteers from around the world, Anderson helped to rescue, clothe and feed literally thousands of desperate people who had been forced to flee war and violence in their home countries of Syria, Afghanistan, Iraq, Ethiopia and Somalia, often with no more than the clothes on their backs.

“What I’ve learned, what I want others to know, is that these people are just like you and me, they’re running from things that any of us would run from, and one person really can make a difference,” said Anderson.

“I can’t solve a problem in totality, but I can make a bucket of soup and feed 2,000 people; I can find donations to get baby diapers. There’s something any one of us can do.”

Ashley Anderson

For Anderson, the road to a career in international service began when, as an 18-year-old freshman at YSU, she signed up for a Protestant Campus Ministries mission trip to a Russian orphanage. She was shocked at the conditions in the government-run facility. “That trip changed my world view,” she said. “I was very naïve. It gave me a new awareness of how differently people live in some other parts of the world.”

She changed her major from Pre-Veterinary Medicine to Psychology, with a minor in Foreign Affairs, and set her sites on working for the United Nations. “It’s a neutral entity that oversees the world condition. I thought it might be a place where I could someday be involved in making significant changes.”

Anderson completed her YSU undergraduate degree in 2007, and then took a caseworker position with Trumbull County Children’s Services, banking most of her salary. After a little over a year, she left her job to volunteer for the Childline India Foundation, a nonprofit agency working with homeless children on the streets of India ­– by then she had stashed away enough cash to live for awhile without a paycheck.

Over time, Anderson realized that she needed more education to fulfill her goals. She went on to complete an intensive Spanish language training in Argentina, earned a master’s degree in Public Administration with a focus on human rights from the Monterey Institute of International Studies in California and an additional MIIS Certificate in Project Management at the American University of Cairo.

Her break into the UN came in the last year of her graduate studies, when she traveled to Malawi, Africa, and then to Geneva, Switzerland, to complete research for her master’s thesis. She accepted an invitation to complete an internship there with the UN’s International Labour Organization and then was offered a position as an ILO consultant working to protect the rights of migrant workers and victims of forced labor and human trafficking.

In her two and a half years with the UN in Geneva, Anderson became painfully aware of the refugee crisis developing in Greece, where thousands of desperate people were crossing the Mediterranean daily, risking their lives to escape from ISIS, war and other violence. Knowing that few humanitarian relief agencies had established operations there yet, Anderson decided she had to go.

UN consultants are independent contractors, with assignments that typically range from three months to a year, she explained. In August 2015, she left Geneva for Lesvos, Greece to become an independent humanitarian first responder for the crisis that was unfolding there.

Working with other volunteers like herself who came from all over the world to give aid, Anderson helped to create a feeding program with donations and volunteer labor that served 2,000 refugees twice a day. “We just used our common sense,” she said. “People are hungry. How do we feed them? Many have lost everything. How can we provide their needs? The beautiful thing was, there was no bureaucracy. No red tape, and so, no delay.”

In her four months on the island, Anderson and two fellow volunteers made international news when they helped to reunite an Iraqi refugee family with its lost pet cat, Kunkush, through a social media campaign. When The Guardian, a British newspaper, picked up the story, it went global, and a Japanese television program called “Unbelievable” even flew reporters out to interview Anderson and the refugee family, now settled in Norway.

“It was more than just a story about a cat – it was a symbol of hope,” she said. “We really thought it was important to reunite that family with their pet.”

Anderson saw heart-rending sights and situations daily throughout her time on the island, and she was especially touched by the needs of the elderly, the disabled, young mothers with babies and small children. “My heart, soul and mind were completely invested in the island,” she said. “I just couldn’t leave.“

But the boat rescue in December traumatized her. She soon realized that, after many weeks of rescuing and caring for desperate refugee families, she needed a break herself.

Anderson remains on the UN’s consultant list and expects to return to her work there soon, but for now she’s “on sabbatical” living in Peru – a country she likes because of the low cost of living and laid-back lifestyle. Not surprisingly, she has not been idle. She’s creating a website that would allow artisans around the world to support themselves by selling their goods online globally, with no middleman. Eventually, she hopes the site will help her raise funds for other humanitarian causes and will additionally provide a source of income for refugees like the ones she worked with in Lesvos.

Anderson’s father lives in Florida now; other family members still reside in the Youngstown area. “I have a lovely family, they’re learning a lot from my experiences, and they’ve been very supportive,” she said. “They accept what I’m doing. They just ask me to be careful.”

(Previously published in YSU Magazine, Fall 2016.)

Ryan Johnson

From Pink Floyd-themed rooms to popular character sculptures, Ryan Johnson has been crafting larger-than-life pieces for high-profile clients all of his young career.

The 26-year-old alum from Colonie, N.Y., has already made a name for himself in a niche field as a production artist for LifeFormations Creative Group, a Cincinnati company that produces sculptures, animatronics and environments for theme parks and museums around the world. With a client list that includes Disney, Sony Pictures and more, the company is one of the country’s few to offer artists the opportunity to create hyper-realistic figures of some of the most beloved characters of all time.

Johnson, who graduated with a BFA in 3D Studies and a BSEd in Art Education from YSU, is one of those artists.

Working in a sculpture shop with a team of others artists, he’s responsible for taking 3D-printed prototypes and hand-crafting them into characters and environments to be installed in different attractions. His main job is to sculpt and paint the figures before and after they’re cast in plastic and structurally reinforced, but he’s also had a hand in welding and mold-making work.

“It’s hard to believe that I’ve been here five months and have already worked on properties for Columbia Pictures, Ripley’s Believe It or Not and Universal Studios,” Johnson said. “I’ve always been a fan of theme park environments; now I have a job creating them.”

With inspiration from his high school art teachers and ties to the Mahoning Valley – the New York native’s mother, Shirley, is a Penguin alum and originally from Warren – Johnson enrolled in YSU’s Art Education program in 2008. But after taking a sculpture class his sophomore year, he fell in love with three-dimensional artwork and decided to double major.

“The sculpture program at YSU is a gem,” he said. “One of the main things I took away was experience in creative problem-solving. You wouldn’t believe some of the obscure and almost ridiculous requests I’ve had to figure out how to make work.”

Possibly the most interesting of these requests came during Johnson’s senior year. Two clients were in the market for artists to transform a building they owned into a themed showcase for their classic rock memorabilia. “Let’s just call them ‘super fans,’” Johnson said, smiling.

He was their first hire and spent two years creating scenes themed around music legends like Pink Floyd and Elton John. One of his rooms even got the rock-on stamp of approval from its muse – the clients showed his finished sanctuary to members of the band Kansas.

Best of all, the work Johnson produced in that first freelance assignment gave him the perfect prerequisite experience needed to land his current position.

“LifeFormations contacted me within six hours of applying for the job,” Johnson remembers. “They said to find someone who already had experience in making theme-park quality work is rare.”

While he’s already immortalized rock stars and cartoons alike, Johnson is aiming for even more; one of his chief after-hours pursuits is developing his own toy line.

“I’m teaching myself digital techniques, and I invested in my own 3D printer,” said Johnson, whose apartment has become a makeshift digital and sculpting shop all his own. “I’ve learned every step of the process, from concept art to modeling to mold-making and casting.

“I’d love to bring some of my own characters into the world some day.”

(Previously published in YSU Magazine, Fall 2016.)

Cassandra Shaffer

Cassandra Shaffer of Sharpsville, Pa., a senior chemistry major at Youngstown State University, participated in the Syracuse University International Research Experience for Undergraduates at the Technical University of Graz, Austria, this past summer.

The REU is funded by the National Science Foundation, and Shaffer was one of only eight students selected nationally to travel to Austria. In Austria, Shaffer conducted research focusing on the synthesis of monomers for ring-opening metathesis reactions.

A graduate of Kennedy Catholic High School in Hermitage, Pa., Shaffer is a member of both the Dean’s and President’s Lists at YSU and maintains a 4.0 grade point average. She’s also part of the Honors College at YSU and has served as a tutor at the Center for Student Progress.

Earlier this year, Shaffer obtained certification from the ACS Inorganic Division of the Department of Chemistry. She also gained membership into Phi Kappa Phi. Shaffer received the Dr. Eugene Scudder Organic Chemistry Scholarship and the CRC Freshman Chemistry Achievement Award. She has presented at YSU’s QUEST research forum, and she was part of the Meritorious Team that presented at the International Math Contest in Modeling MCM-COMAP.