Spring/Summer 2022 Class Notes
1950s
1950s
Mildred “Millie” Grossman, MA ’54, Waverly, OH, turned 100 on October 27, 2021. She celebrated with her brother, Mel Grossman, BS ’55, Bellbrook, Ohio, and his wife, Shelley.
Millie Grossman majored in Latin, English and social studies at Heidelberg University in Tiffin, Ohio, and graduated in 1943. She taught high school in Magnolia, Ohio, and Edinburg, Ohio, (one year at each) and then at LaBrae High School in Leavittsburg, Ohio, for 12 years. When Kent State began offering a library science curriculum in 1946, she began taking summer classes and received a master’s degree in 1954. Her last teaching assignment was at Glenwood High School (now GlenOak) in Canton, Ohio, where she applied her library skills for 21 years. She also volunteered to help three elementary schools in Alliance, Ohio, enhance their library programs.
Her brother, Mel, notes: “Years of post-retirement volunteering in a host of community and church activities in Alliance (her hometown) kept her active and vital.”
Jersey presentation: (Left to right) Sean Lewis, Lou Holtz, and Randale Richmond
Lou Holtz, BS ’59, Honorary Doctor of Law ’94, Orlando, FL, was the guest speaker at the Fellowship of Christian Athletes Breakfast as part of the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl in Boise, Idaho, on Dec. 20, 2021. About 70 Kent State players and coaches joined a similar group from the team’s bowl opponent, the University of Wyoming, along with hundreds of other patrons, to hear Holtz share stories of the gridiron and about his faith. Sean Lewis, Kent State’s head football coach, and Randale Richmond, MS ’06, Kent State’s athletic director, presented Holtz with a Kent State jersey. The next day, the Wyoming Cowboys beat the Kent State Golden Flashes 52 to 38.
1960s
1960s
Left: Emmett Till from the “Black Lives Matter Martyrs” woodblock print series; Right: Sugar Cemented Slavery from the “Why Reparations” lino print series
Charles “Chuck” Miley, BS ’65, Maplewood, NJ, exhibited work from two of his series—“Why Reparations” and “Black Lives Matter Martyrs”—in a special installation celebrating Black History Month. The exhibit was part of Fresh Air Montclair Exhibitions, a township-wide initiative to promote and support art and artists in public spaces while enlivening empty storefronts for community enjoyment. The “Why Reparations” lino print series will become an art-made book illustrating the series of prints.
In his artist statement, Miley wrote, “Slavery, the original sin of our country, has left a poison in our society. As an artist, my art is my voice; I must use my art to draw attention to this hate and injustice. Picasso said, â€Painting (art) is a weapon.’ Therefore, I â€say their names’ in my â€Black Lives Matter Martyrs’ series of woodblock prints. I honor those men’s and women’s lives and their memory.”
He later wrote, “I also have been awarded a Fellowship Grant from the New Jersey State Council of the Arts in printmaking. I guess this goes back to around 1962 in the Introduction to Printmaking course in old Van Deusen Hall at KSU. My work at Kent State and my graduate work at Rutgers University and Pratt Manhattan have brought me to this point in my career where I am gathering benefits.”
A longtime music teacher at Cabrillo College in Aptos, Sekon hosted concerts in his home and other local venues for the past several years. When the concert series outgrew a “house concert” size, he partnered with the Episcopal Church of St. John the Baptist to present the Aptos Keyboard Series at St. John’s, with the mission to promote gifted young pianists and offer them the opportunity to perform in a concert setting.
1970s
1970s
Michael Chanak Jr., BS ’71, Cincinnati, OH, wrote, “I was invited to speak to a group of 16 students at Northern Kentucky University who enrolled in the course Queer Activism, hosted by the Honors College and taught by Dr. Bonnie Meyer, director of LGBTQ Programs and Services, for Gay History Month in October 2021. I also spoke at the city of Cincinnati’s LGBTQIA+ employee resource group in October. The two P&G videos on the history of inclusion at P&G that I appeared in (The Words Matter and Out of the Shadows) have been subtitled in Mandarin and 14 other languages. In 2022, it will be 30 years since the change I advocated for was made to P&G’s non-discrimination policy.”
James Ellor, BS ’73, McGregor, TX, arrived at Kent in fall 1970. During his time at Kent State, he initiated the McElrath/Skeels Rehabilitation Group and served in the University Year for Action and Volunteers in Service to America (now AmeriCorps VISTA). He went on to McCormick Theological Seminary and the University of Chicago to become both a social worker and Presbyterian minister. He earned a DMin. and PhD from Chicago Theological Seminary while working at the University of Chicago to bridge religious and spiritual concerns of older adults.
He taught at National Louis University for 21 years and at Baylor University for 17 years, recently retiring from Baylor as the Dorothy Barfield Kronzer Endowed Professor Emeritus in Family Studies at the Diana R. Garland School of Social Work. He is also an adjunct faculty member at Asbury Theological Seminary. He has written 10 books, more than 150 juried articles and is an internationally known speaker on the topic of religion and aging.
Ellor has been the general editor of the Journal of Religion, Spirituality & Aging for the past 23 years. He is currently the co-general editor of the new Encyclopedia of Death and Dying (Routledge Press).
His work with the local community in Ravenna, Ohio, started him on a 50-year career to serve people in communities and churches, training students on these topics and filling gaps in the literature. In his retirement, he continues to offer counseling for first responders and to support churches with ministries for older adults.
M. Scott McBride, BM ’76, MM ’78, DuBois, PA, retired as chancellor of Penn State DuBois, effective July 1, 2021. He received a Nittany Lion statue from the DuBois Educational Foundation board members in recognition and appreciation of his service. Under his direction, Penn State DuBois raised more than $12 million, mostly in support of student scholarships. The funds also helped establish the North Central PA LaunchBox, one of 21 entrepreneurial centers the university has founded across the state to promote economic growth in the region.
Before coming to Penn State DuBois in March 2017, McBride was dean of the Caudill College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences at Morehead State University in Kentucky, beginning in 2008. Prior to that he was chair of the department of music and a professor of music at Morehead State. In 1990, he earned a doctorate in philosophy of music education from the University of Oklahoma.
Rick Haines, BBA ’77, MBA ’89, North Canton, OH, was named president and CEO of Aultman Health Foundation as of July 1, 2021. He previously was president and CEO of AultCare, the Aultman Health Foundation’s affiliated insurance company, since 2001. AultCare has been named among Best Insurance Companies by U.S. News & World Report over multiple years for its Medicare Advantage Plan. Haines’ volunteer work includes past board chairmanships with the Canton Regional Chamber of Commerce and Â鶹´«Ă˝ at Stark.
Annalisa Stubbs Williams, BA ’77, Akron, OH, was selected to serve on the Â鶹´«Ă˝ Alumni Association’s National Board of Directors, effective July 1, 2021. The 21-member volunteer board meets quarterly.
In May 2022, she was honored as a Woman of Distinction by the Girl Scouts of North East Ohio, and she received the University of Akron School of Law's Outstanding Law Alumni Award.
After graduating from Kent State with a degree in political science, Williams earned master’s and law degrees from The University of Akron. She was elected to the Akron bench in 2003 and has started and presided over several programs in the court, including the Mental Health Court.
1980s
1980s
Beth A. Cunningham, BS ’82, MA ’84, PhD ’87, Hyattsville, MD, of the American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT), has been named a fellow of the American Physical Society. The number of APS fellows elected each year is limited to no more than one-half of 1% of the membership. It is a prestigious recognition by her peers of her outstanding contributions to physics.
She became executive officer of AAPT in 2011 and has worked with the association’s leadership, committees and staff to increase the focus on excellence in physics education with particular emphasis on improving the educational and occupational opportunities for women and historically marginalized groups within the physics education community.
Cunningham’s professional contributions have included numerous refereed publications, workshops and presentations. She has helped lead important faculty development projects, including the Project Kaleidoscope Summer Leadership Institutes, the Council on Undergraduate Research (CUR) Transformations Project and the U.S. delegation to the International Union of Pure and Applied Physics International Conference on Women in Physics. With funding from the National Science Foundation, she co-produced the 2014 video HERStories: Words of Wisdom and Encouragement from Women in Physics. Leading a committee of women educators in physics and astronomy, she developed the eAlliances Project in 2017, and she is currently the principal investigator of the Physics and Astronomy SEA Change pilot project.
Dean L. Seavers, BBA ’84, Chestnut Hill, MA, has been appointed a new member of the Board of Directors of AMETEK Inc., effective Feb. 24, 2022. AMETEK is a leading global manufacturer of electronic instruments and electromechanical devices, with 2021 sales of $5.5 billion.
Seavers most recently served as president and executive director for National Grid, a leading provider of electricity, natural gas and clean energy solutions. From 2015 through 2020 he led an impressive transformation at National Grid, including leading its clean energy and decarbonization initiatives. Previously, he served as founding president and chief executive officer at Red Hawk Fire & Security, the second largest independent fire and security platform in the US, and at GE Security, a $2 billion product and technology group. He has also held leadership positions at United Technologies Corp. and Tyco International, and he serves on the board of directors for Pacific Gas and Electric Co., Albemarle Corp. and James Hardie Building Products.
After graduating from Kent State, Seavers earned an MBA from Stanford University’s Graduate School of Business.
Debra Lew Harder, BS ’85, Gladwyne, PA, was appointed the new host of the Metropolitan Opera’s live radio broadcasts, the longest-running classical music program in American radio history. A pianist and former practicing physician, she is just the fifth host of the 91-year-old broadcast series. While attending medical school at NEOMED, Lew Harder was mentored by Tung Kwong-Kwong, who taught piano at the Â鶹´«Ă˝ School of Music, along with her husband, Ma Si-Hon, a professor of violin. Read her 11/24/10 blog post about .
Michael Loderstedt, MFA ’85, Cleveland, OH, Kent State Professor Emeritus of Art (2006-2016), was named a 2022 Artist-in-Residence in poetry and visual art by Akron Soul Train Gallery. Part of the residency includes an .
1990s
1990s
Jan Jumet, BBA ’91, Darlington, PA, founder and chief executive officer of Jumet Financial, announced the opening of his national headquarters in Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania, in August 2021. The firm, which is registered through LBL Financial, also has offices in Canton, Ohio, and Scottsdale, Arizona. He and his team serve more than 562 clients in 33 states.
The Sabatose family: (left to right) Lori, Gabby, Adam, Chuck
Lori Sabatose, MA ’93, Brockport, PA, and her family were named the 2019/2020 Allegheny Mountain District Family of the Year by the United States Tennis Association. The designation honors the family’s contribution to tennis, representing the development and promotion of tennis on and off the court on a local and/or section basis. The Allegheny Mountain District includes 24 counties from Erie, Pennsylvania, to West Virginia. The Sabatose family was honored at the USTA Middle States AMD Awards Ceremony on Oct. 16, 2021, at Mount Lebanon Tennis Center in Pittsburgh.
Sabatose, who taught tennis at Kent State as a graduate student from 1992 to 1993, has taught tennis at Penn State DuBois, and has coached high school, college and international teams. She is certified by the Professional Tennis Registry and serves on the leadership council for the United States Tennis Association. In 2020 she started a nonprofit, DuBois Regional Tennis Association, which offers free clinics for the community. To help support tennis, contact duboiscta@gmail.com.
Danielle Dixon, BA ’95, Cleveland, OH, was named a 2022 Artist-in-Residence in poetry and visual art by Akron Soul Train Gallery. Part of the residency includes an artist-led community engagement program. Learn more at .
Bard Fulton, BS ’95, MBA ’98, Cleveland, OH, has been promoted to vice president of Fortney & Weygandt Inc., as of Feb. 1, 2022. He will be responsible for continuing to drive the growth of the company’s general contracting service nationwide. In his new role, Fulton will focus on project development, operational efficiencies and streamlining internal business processes. He will continue with his active role in multi-site project management and project estimating.
Fulton began his career at Fortney & Weygandt in 2001 as a project manager overseeing various multi-site rollout programs and soon began leading the department. He has worked with retail, restaurant and commercial clients on national projects with varied scopes, and he looks forward to getting involved with more projects and managing from a corporate level.
Thrity Umrigar, PhD ’97, Cleveland Heights, OH, a Distinguished University Professor of English at Case Western University, recently published her latest novel, Honor (Algonquin Books, January 2022), which was an Indie Next List pick and Reese’s Book Club pick for January 2022.
“A few years ago, I read a series of articles about the misogyny endured by women in rural India,” says Umrigar. “I lived in India until I was 21, but as an urban kid, some of the â€traditions’ and rituals I read about—most of which are rooted in iron-clad beliefs about caste and religion and patriarchy—shocked me. I began to conceive of a novel where a woman exercises basic human rights—the right to employment, to love and marry whoever she chooses—and is brutally punished for her courage. I wanted to explore her inner life, the source of such bravery. And then I thought of a second character, one who has had the advantages of wealth and education, but who has also been wounded by the divisions in Indian society. I wanted to see these two women in conversation, to see whether they could inspire the other.”
Umrigar is the bestselling author of eight novels, including The Space Between Us, a finalist for the PEN/Beyond Margins Award, as well as a memoir and three children’s picture books. Her books have been translated into several languages and published in more than 15 countries. She is the winner of the Cleveland Arts Prize, a Lambda Literary award and the Seth Rosenberg Prize. A former prize-winning journalist and recipient of a Niemen Fellowship to Harvard in 1999, she has contributed to the Boston Globe, the Washington Post, The New York Times and Huffington Post.
Jamy Bechler, MA ’98, Barberton, OH, recently published his fourth book, The Captain: Inspiring others is about more than just a title (MH Book Services, November 2021). In the month after its release, it became Amazon’s No. 1 new release in children’s football books and in the College Student Life section, among others. The Captain is a fictional story about a star quarterback turned hot shot fighter pilot. Despite always being talented and having positions of leadership, the main character never really understood what it meant to be a real leader. He plays his best game—the blame game—when he has a training accident. This failed mission eventually brings him face to face with the realization that leadership is about more than just individual talent, power or status.
Bechler spent more than 20 years as a college basketball coach and high school athletics director before starting his own leadership company. He now works with high-level organizations and sports teams helping them maximize their potential in leadership, culture and teamwork.
He began his coaching career working with the men’s basketball team at Kent State as a graduate student from 1996-1998. He was also a teaching assistant in the Physical Education and Sports Performance program.
“I loved my time at Kent State and have many lifelong friendships as a result of going there,” wrote Bechler. “That includes meeting my wife, which is a really good thing. I am indebted to all of my professors, mentors and coaches during my time there. I would not ever have been the coach and leader I was without the experiences I had at Kent State. There is no doubt they had a profound effect on my life and made me want to give back and try to make a difference in someone’s life like they did for me. I try to write books and provide positive insights to help today’s athletes better understand how they can make a difference on their teams and in their communities.”
Learn more about Bechler’s other books, as well as his insights on leadership, culture or teamwork on , or visit Twitter @CoachBechler.
Marti Bledsoe Post, BA ’99, Hilliard, OH, was named the executive director of , a movement for children’s mental health created by Nationwide Children’s Hospital. In this newly established role, effective September 2021, Post leads strategy and operations for the organization. Its goal is to ensure that every community in America has access to free, evidence-informed mental health resources to break stigmas and start conversations about building mental well-being for children. She oversees a team dedicated to advance programming, fundraising and national visibility for this vital cause.
2000s
2000s
Three generations tenured at Kent State: Left, Byron Dressler, director of the university’s first Computer Center, pictured sitting at a computer in Â鶹´«Ă˝ Summer News, Aug. 12, 1965. Right, Jane Dressler, Professor Emerita of Voice, and Ginnie Dressler, digital projects librarian and associate professor at Â鶹´«Ă˝ Libraries
Virginia “Ginnie” Dressler, BA ’01, MLIS ’07, Kent, OH, digital projects librarian and associate professor at Â鶹´«Ă˝ Libraries, received tenure in summer 2021. Dressler, who began working at the Kent Campus in April 2014, is the third generation in her family to be tenured at Kent State.
Her mother, Jane Dressler, DMA, Professor Emerita of Voice, was tenured in the Glauser School of Music, where she taught voice (soprano) and music theory from August 1987 to June 2020. She served as interim director of the school from August 2017 through June 2019 and retired as a full professor in 2020.
Her grandfather, Byron Dressler, taught in the mathematics department from fall 1948 to January 1978 and earned tenure in 1954. He also was director of the university’s first Computer Center, which was established in 1962 or 1963. Located in Merrill Hall, it was used primarily for research.
“He died in 1981, when I was a year old, so I don’t really remember him,” Ginnie Dressler says. “But I have often wondered what he would have thought about my career path. It’s been a joke in our immediate family that there has been a Dressler on the books at Kent State since the late 1940s.”
Jennifer Weed, Med ’01, Chicago, IL, was named the new president of the University of Dayton Alumni Association Board in July 2021. She will serve a three-year term.
Weed is the vice president of education at CCIM Institute. Formerly known as Commercial Investment Real Estate Institute of the National Association of Realtors, it is the professional certification and educational resource for commercial and investment real estate. Her professional experience includes roles with the Strategic Account Management Association, the American Bar Association, DePaul University and Xavier University. She earned a law degree from Loyola University Chicago.
Jason Dorfman, BGS ’02, Aliso Viejo, CA, is the chief business officer of Betterbrand Inc., founder of the W Supplements Company and co-founder of CanDo, maker of the Keto Krisp line of protein bars. He and his family live in Orange County, California.
Kimberly (Crowley) Patton, BA ’02, Cleveland, OH, has been promoted to associate director of clinical services at the Summit County Alcohol, Drug Addiction & Mental Health Services (ADM) Board, as of September 2021. In this role, Patton facilitates planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of contract agencies’ clinical and support services across Summit County.
Previously, Patton was the addiction, treatment and training coordinator for the board, where she monitored both substance use disorder treatment and prevention programming. Before joining the ADM board, she worked at Northcoast Behavioral Healthcare for 11 years, her most recent role as its director of social services.
In addition to a Bachelor of Arts in psychology from Kent State, she also holds a Master of Science in social administration from Case Western Reserve University and an advanced chemical dependency certification from Columbus State Community College.
Christine M. Rich, BA ’02, Hudson, OH, wrote, “Did you know that 80% of people living with autoimmune disease in the US are women? As one of those women living with an autoimmune disease since I was 17, I found this statistic staggering. My debut memoir, Chronic (New Degree Press) was published on August 30, 2021, about my experience living with a chronic illness called Crohn’s disease. I decided to write this book because I spent many years trying to hide from and deny the fear, anger and sadness I felt because of my illness. Through raw and personal stories and insights, I candidly share my journey of living with and eventually learning to befriend my less-than-glamorous, oftentimes invisible, chronic illness.
“Those insights include how women insist they’re â€fine’ even when they aren’t, why physicians should consistently discuss mental health with their chronically ill patients and what the power of radical acceptance and self-love can provide. Chronic encourages readers to shift their perspective of chronic illness from one of shame and fear to one of acceptance and love. My hope is that by sharing my story other women feel empowered to share their own and realize they’re not alone.” See .
Caryl Church Jesseph, BA ’03, MA ’06, Willoughby, OH, joined Mind Body Align as a curriculum and education developer and mindful educator. Mind Body Align teaches mindful social emotional learning (SEL) and workplace programs. Mindful SEL improves learning for 90.5% of students including 70% of at-risk students. Mind Body Align also provides mindfulness education to businesses as part of employee resources.
Along with 15 years of experience in public schools as a K-12 art educator, Jesseph is also a certified yoga teacher, published writer, exhibited artist and winner of the Northeast Ohio Outstanding Art Educator award and the Carrie Nordlund award. She complements her work with modalities rooted in storytelling, visual art, movement, play and ecological connection. Learn more at .
Jennifer Smith, BS ’03, Hilliard, OH, was selected as chief operating officer for Lifeline of Ohio, effective July 2021. Lifeline of Ohio is an organ procurement organization serving 78 hospitals throughout 38 counties in Central and Southeastern Ohio and two counties in West Virginia.
Smith began her career as a medical technologist in transfusion medicine at The Johns Hopkins Hospital, followed by two years of service as a laboratory technologist II in quality control for the American Red Cross in Columbus. Since 2007, she has served as manager and then director of Lifeline of Ohio’s quality and regulatory affairs department, establishing herself as a leader for regulatory guidelines and compliance standards on both a state and national level. She has extensive experience in quality auditing with regulatory agencies and serves on numerous quality councils to shape industry best practices.
Warrior Saber Event: (Left to right) Staff Sargeant Rodney Wentz, Sargeant Harold Wentz, Shawn Wentz, Sargeant Rachel Dillon, Robert Jones, corporal, Portage County Sheriffs Association
Shawn M. Wentz, BS ’03, Denver, CO, director of Warrior Saber, assisted the Kent State gymnastics team at their Military Appreciation Meet on Jan. 28, 2022. Warrior Saber is a 501c3 organization with a mission to locate veterans who are still serving their community and to honor them in front of others.
At the meet, he presented the Warrior Saber Award of Merit and a saber to Rachel Rydbom Dillon, a Northeast Ohio veteran who served in the US Marine Corps, for her service to the Portage County community as a corrections officer for the past 21 years.
Wentz, a former Kent State student-athlete, says it was an honor for him to celebrate all veterans (including his two family members pictured above, who served in Vietnam) in front of student-athletes at the event.
Randi Woods, BA ’03, Akron, OH, established a small-batch product line, Goods, in 2016, which has grown into a successful small Black-owned business primarily through word-of-mouth. Goods offers an array of organic plant-based products, including body creams and butters, natural deodorant, beard and skin oils made for all skin and hair textures, tooth powders, bug repellent and a clay detox mask, among other products. All are free of toxic ingredients and fillers. Learn more at the .
Marisa “Risa” August Heidt, BA ’04, Golden, CO, triathlete, ironwoman, wrote an article in Pituitary World News in July 2020 about receiving a diagnosis in 2018 of a pituitary tumor that caused acromegaly, a rare disorder that occurs when the pituitary gland produces too much growth hormone. After surgery and treatment in 2019, some of the tumor remains inoperable and she still deals with complications from the surgery. Certified as a Gestalt practitioner and in mindfulness-based cognitive therapy, Heidt has developed workshops and creative practices to help others going through similar life-altering medical diagnoses. In 2021, she rode her bike on a 1,845-mile journey down the West Coast from Canada to Mexico to raise awareness of rare pituitary diseases (often overlooked or misdiagnosed). She plans to tackle the EuroVelo 6 in Europe in 2022. Learn more at and on Facebook @risaunleashed.
Crystal M. C. Davis, BA ’04, Twinsburg, OH, received the 2021 Great Lakes Leadership Award from the Great Lakes Protection Fund in recognition of her efforts to protect the health of the Great Lakes basin and the people who live in the region. One of six people recognized for trailblazing efforts on behalf of the Great Lakes in 2021, she is vice president of policy and strategic engagement for the Alliance for the Great Lakes. (She was previously federal relations director for Â鶹´«Ă˝.)
Davis’ approach of focusing on the needs of people who live in the Great Lakes region is prompting both environmentalists and policymakers to look at water quality issues in a new way. Her approach focuses on fair and equitable access to the benefits that come with restoring the ecological health of the system—like access to clean drinking water and the removal of toxins from the lakes and surrounding waterways.
She spearheaded the development of Shut Up and Listen, a 2018 report that summarizes what was learned from community conversations in the Cleveland area and guides those who want to address community concerns.
Prior to joining the Alliance, Davis served as federal relations director for Kent State’s Office of Government & Community Relations in Washington, DC, where she established the university’s office on Capitol Hill.
Jonathan Junker, BS ’04, BArc ’05, Bainbridge Island, WA, designs upscale homes in the Seattle, Washington, area since moving there after graduating from Kent State. He also branched out into custom lighting for hotels, museums and office buildings around the world as the co-owner of Graypants, a company with offices in Seattle and Amsterdam. Junker and a former partner established the company in 2007 to produce laser-cut lamps from corrugated cardboard.
While at Graypants, he collaborated on transforming an old, abandoned garage on Vashon Island into a glowing lakeside cabin, which earned him the American Institute of Architects Honor Award for Washington state. He also won the Millennial Entrepreneur of the Year award in 2016 from the U.S. Small Business Administration, in recognition of his achievements at Graypants and its partnership with the Dutch government for product distribution.
In 2019 he sold his share in the lighting studio and now works in his own creative office on Bainbridge Island in Puget Sound.
Ryan D. Andrews, MS ’05, MA ’05, Harwich, MA, is an advocate for sustainable food systems, a dietitian, yoga instructor, and strength and conditioning specialist. His new e-book, Swole Planet: Building a Better Body and a Better Earth, is a guide to help people build a body that’s functional and fit, while building a planet that’s more sustainable and equitable.
Andrews was a competitive body builder from 1996-2001. His graduate degrees from Kent State are in nutrition and exercise physiology, and he completed his training to become a registered dietitian at Johns Hopkins Medicine. He studied sustainable food systems at Columbia University and volunteers on sustainable farms and with nonprofit food recovery organizations. He’s been teaching at SUNY’s Purchase College since 2018. For details, see . Discounts on the book are available for farmers, teachers, dietitians or those in the nonprofit sector.
James M. Hill, MLIS ’05, Chillicothe, OH, director of the Chillicothe and Ross County Library, has been named the 2021 Librarian of the Year by the Ohio Library Council. This prestigious award honors a librarian whose recent accomplishments have impacted the library profession and library service to the community.
During the pandemic and under Hill's leadership, the library developed a check-in program to monitor elderly and isolated individuals. He added Chromebooks for patron checkout, extended Wi-Fi access and created a telehealth room at the Main Library. He and his staff also developed an expansion of the outreach department and a new bike-lending program, among other projects.
In response to the drug epidemic in Ross County, Hill forged a partnership with other county agencies to bring a peer recovery supporter to the library. This person provides an essential service to the county, helping people navigate treatment options and finding resources to help.
In addition, Hill has assisted six staff members in obtaining their Master of Library and Information Science degrees and/or professional certifications.
Stephanie Sweany, BS ’05, Canton, OH, was appointed executive director at Stark County Hunger Task Force. She has been with the organization since 2017, most recently as assistant director. Founded in 1981, the nonprofit serves 34,000 Stark County residents each month through a network of about 40 food pantries and 12 Backpack for Kids programs.
Sweany is engaged in various community activities, including the Canton Kindness Coalition, which she founded in 2018. She is the vice president of Kent State’s Stark County Alumni chapter, and she received the Â鶹´«Ă˝ Alumni Association’s Advocacy Award in 2020.
Kate (Leishman) Yancho, BFA ’05, Kalamazoo, MI, was appointed to a three-year term at the Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer in September 2021. The MCACA is Michigan’s key conduit for arts and cultural information, grant funding and more. Yancho continues to serve as the executive director of Wellspring/Cori Terry & Dancers, a 501c3 nonprofit professional modern dance company celebrating its 41st anniversary in Kalamazoo.
Darren Byler, BA ’06, New Westminster, British Columbia, published Terror Capitalism: Uyghur Dispossession and Masculinity in a Chinese City (Duke University Press, February 2022). Byler, a sociocultural anthropologist and assistant professor at Simon Fraser University’s School for International Studies, based his book on two years of ethnographic fieldwork among Uyghur and Han internal male migrants.
In the book, he theorizes about the contemporary Chinese colonization of the Uyghur Muslim minority group in the northwest autonomous region of Xinjiang, showing how it has led to what he calls terror capitalism—a configuration of ethno-racialization, surveillance and mass detention that in this case promotes settler colonialism. He focuses on the experiences of young Uyghur men—who are the primary target of state violence—and how they develop masculinities and homosocial friendships to protect themselves against gendered, ethnoracial and economic violence.
Theodore Ferringer Jr., MArc ’06, MUD ’06, Cleveland, OH, was promoted to senior associate at Bialosky Cleveland in 2020. A member of Crain’s Cleveland Business 2019 Forty Under 40 class and a recipient of the AIA Ohio 2021 Emerging Professional Award, Ferringer is a licensed architect and recognized community leader. In addition to advocating for equitable design excellence through numerous community boards, he has served his profession through the American Institute of Architects at the local and national levels, notably as the AIA National Associates Committee Chair in 2016. His projects include Cleveland Metroparks Edgewater Beach House, the Schofield Building Restoration and the co-located Cleveland Public Library Walz Branch/Karam Senior Housing project. He is an active member of the Â鶹´«Ă˝ Alumni Association.
Tamie J. Jovanelly, PhD ’06, Rome, GA, is the award-winning and bestselling author of Iceland Geology: Tectonics, Volcanics, and Glacial Features (Wiley, 2020). Her book captures the island’s natural beauty and enhances it with detailed descriptions linking the relationships among structure, process and time to the island’s evolution. Jovanelly, a geologist, translates peer-reviewed scientific literature to provide the reader with the most up-to-date research discussing interesting, and sometimes debated, geological theories regarding an island splitting in half due to plate tectonic motion.
Sarah Shendy, BA ’06, Cuyahoga Falls, OH, was nominated as a Top Cop in recognition of her dedication as a Copley police officer to Copley and to Summit County. The office of Summit County Prosecutor Sherri Bevan Walsh nominated her.
Shendy, who serves as the administrator for Ohio’s Office of Law Enforcement, was asked to write about recruitment for Police1’s 22 on 2022: A police leadership playbook. The playbook offers solutions from law enforcement and criminal justice experts for 22 ongoing and emerging issues facing police leaders and officers in 2022.
She also coordinated a Women in Law Enforcement Roundtable event for the Office of Law Enforcement Recruitment on March 8, 2022, at Cuyahoga Community College. The free event was a public forum where women leaders discussed opportunities and challenges in law enforcement careers.
Patricia Lovell, MLS ’07, Canton, OH, presented a short film, “Miles to Go,” on June 10, 2021, at the Lions Lincoln Theatre in Massillon, Ohio. The film—which she wrote, directed and produced—was inspired by her own running experiences. It notes the inequalities between men and women who jog for recreation and fitness or who run in competitions. She hopes to enter it in the Cleveland International Film Festival, as well as other festivals. She also plans to post it on YouTube.
An avid runner, Lovell started Girls on the Run of Stark County in 2010 and served as director for five years. The group’s goal is to inspire young girls to be happy, healthy and confident while creatively incorporating running into the program.
Lovell taught high school English for eight years, then worked as a librarian for GlenOak High School and later Marlington High School before retiring at age 62.
Hallie Crouch, BS ’08, MArc ’09, Akron, OH, has been promoted to associate principal at Bialosky Cleveland and is the first nontraditional practitioner to hold the title. She contributes and advises on many dimensions of the practice, including business development, marketing, strategic planning, HR, brand identity, firm culture, policies and programs. She has presented on the topics of equity and alternative careers at design schools and architecture conferences, including the 2019 National Women’s Leadership Summit. She is a frequent juror of student work at her alma mater.
Emilia Sykes, BA ’08, Akron, OH, stepped down in December 2021 after three years as leader of the Ohio House Democratic Caucus. In January, she announced her candidacy for Ohio’s 13th Congressional District, writing on Twitter, “I’m running for Congress to advocate on behalf of Ohio’s families. I’ve made it my mission to keep jobs in our state and to expand opportunities for all in NE Ohio—not just the wealthy and well-connected.” Learn more at.
Sheila R. Feaster, DPM ’09, Huntington, WV, a board-certified, fellowship-trained podiatrist, has joined Marshall Health and Cabell Huntington Hospital, a member of Mountain Health Network. She will also serve as an assistant professor at the Marshall University Joan C. Edwards School of Medicine Department of Orthopaedic Surgery.
Prior to joining Marshall Health, Feaster served as a provider for an OSF Medical Group specialty clinic in Monmouth, Illinois. She specializes in foot, ankle and wound care.
Jordan Hamrick, BBA ’09, TT ’09, Atwater, OH, was recognized as a 2021 NextGen to Watch by Family Business Magazine. He represents the third generation of leadership at Hamrick Packaging Systems, a manufacturer of secondary, or end-of-line, packaging equipment. Its clientele includes companies as large as Kraft, Heinz and Coca-Cola and as small as craft breweries.
He began working summer shifts at what was then known as Hamrick Manufacturing while in high school, mopping floors, cleaning toilets and picking up parts from local distributors. After graduating from Kent State with degrees in business management and marketing, he started working full time in the family business in 2010. His first role was in marketing, then sales and he is now president.
“Since I started, we’ve gone from 22 employees to 49 and have strengthened every aspect of our operation,” Hamrick says. “I’m proud of what we’ve been able to accomplish as a family-owned-and-operated business for the last 46 years, and even prouder that we’re doing it in the right way.”
Paul Rossetti, BS ’09, MArc ’11, MBA ’11, Kent, OH, has been promoted to associate at Bialosky Cleveland. A veteran of the US Air Force Reserve, he joined the firm in 2016 as an architectural designer with specialties in virtual reality and building information modeling. Notable projects include MAGNET, Centric and the Belle Oaks mixed use development.
2010s
2010s
John Hickman, Cert. ’11, Cleveland, OH, who earned a post-baccalaureate certification in paralegal studies from Kent State, has worked with several Kent State paralegal interns over the last eight years at Gallagher Sharp LLP, in Cleveland. He recently supervised Kent State senior Chelsea Appling, XAA ’20, from August to December 2021.
At Gallagher Sharp, Appling, who is pursuing a bachelor’s degree in pre-law studies at Kent State, had the opportunity to apply what she’s learned during her studies. She looks forward to growing in the profession.
Hickman works in several areas of civil litigation at the firm and welcomes the opportunity to help future professionals step into the practice.
Above: The wedding party; Below: The Zips and Golden Flashes in the wedding party have a friendly face-off.
Photos by Marcee Maurer
Shaun Minko, BA ’11, and Danielle Novotny, BA ’11, MA ’14, Myrtle Beach, SC, were engaged on Dec. 25, 2018. Having their initial wedding plans postponed due to COVID-19, they finally were married on June 19, 2021, in Sandusky, Ohio.
They met at Brewhouse Pub in January 2009 and have been together for more than 12 years. Today, Minko is an area manager-large format sales for Better Brands Inc. and Novotny is the branch manager for the Horry County Legislative Delegation office, both in Myrtle Beach. They continue to cheer for Kent State and their other favorite Ohio sports teams from afar!
Members of their wedding party included four other KSU alumni: Johanna (Novotny) Wilson, BS ’06; Molly (DeMattio) Baker, BA ’10, MA ’12; Greg Sikora, BA ’12; and Devon Baker, BS ’15. They made sure to show their KSU pride in the wedding photos!
Eric Mansfield, MA ’12, Akron, OH, premiered his play, Love in Reserve, at Rubber City Theatre in November 2021. It was recently named Best New Play by a Local Playwright by the Cleveland Critics Circle.
His original crime drama, The Confession, ran Feb. 10-12 at convergence-continuum in Cleveland as part of the NEOMFA new plays festival. His full-length drama, Whitesville, which examines the struggles of a mixed-race police family in the immediate aftermath of George Floyd’s murder, ran March 31-April 2 at the Akron Civic Theatre via the Millennial Theatre Project.
Other works of note include a military-themed play, The Board, included in the Fringe Festival in Cleveland at the Mid-America Theatre Conference in February 2022, and a short piece, The Black Dress, which was picked up for a workshop at Millersville University in Pennsylvania.
Mansfield works as assistant vice president, content strategy and communications, at Kent State.
Charmae Cottom, PhD candidate since 2013, Columbia Station, OH, wrote, “I am the director of the Miss Greater Cleveland Scholarship Program, celebrating 100 years of competition. The Miss America Program is the oldest and largest single source of scholarship money for women in the US. We had our 100th competition on Feb. 12, 2022, at the Berea-Midpark High School Auditorium. I am also a high school English teacher at Pioneer Career and Technology Center in Shelby, Ohio, and an English adjunct at Lorain County Community College.
“I have been participating in the Miss Ohio America program since 1980, when I was a college coed. Thanks to the scholarship money that I earned, I completed two bachelor's degrees at Baldwin-Wallace College and, as a lifelong learner, I completed an MA in English literature at John Carroll University and now I am completing a PhD in literature at Kent State. The Miss America Scholarship Program is a wonderful program for talented, community focused women.”
Kyra Kelley, BA ’13, Akron, OH, was named a 2022 Artist-in-Residence in theater and performing arts by Akron Soul Train Gallery. Part of the residency includes an artist-led community engagement program. Learn more at www.akronsoultrain.org.
Jonathan Holland, BS ’14, MArc ’16, MBA ’16, Cleveland, OH, joined Bialosky Cleveland as an architect in 2021. He is an active member of the local chapters of the American Institute of Architects and the National Organization for Minority Architects. His projects include A Place for Me and the Beaumont School renovation.
Dayshawnda Shuelana Ash, AA ’15, BFA ’16, Cleveland, OH, played a character referred to as “The Journey” in a workshop production of India Nicole Burton’s play Panther Women: An Army for the Liberation, which was held outdoors at Cleveland Public Theatre in July 2021. Her character comes to a sacred place to ask her ancestors to show her the meaning of being a Black woman.
Ash has performed, taught and written at Western Reserve Playhouse in Bath Township and is a teaching artist and site coordinator at Cleveland Public Theatre.
Christopher Persons, BS ’15, MArc ’16, Cleveland, OH, has been promoted to associate at Bialosky Cleveland. He joined Bialosky in 2015 and earned a merit award in 2016 from AIA Cleveland for his student graduate project, Drydock No. 2. Other notable projects include Library Lofts, Progressive Insurance Alpha North Annex and the Physician Assistant Building at Ursuline College. He is registered as an architect with the American Institute of Architects.
Ethan Rothermel, BS ’15, MArc ’16, Canton, OH, joined Bialosky Cleveland as an architectural designer in 2021. During his studies at Kent State, he participated in a study-abroad program in Florence, Italy. He came to the firm with a strong interest in digital fabrication and parametric/computational design and a portfolio that included architectural projects, studio work and CNC furniture design. His current projects include Library Lofts, The Pearl, Cleveland Public Library’s Walz Branch and Karam Senior Housing.
Katelyn Walker, BA ’16, Cleveland, OH, was promoted to associate at Bialosky Cleveland in 2020. She is an accredited interior designer and WELL accredited professional with a specialty in healthy building and materials. She joined the firm in 2016. Her projects include Â鶹´«Ă˝â€™s Visual Communication Design, The City Mission and Lorain County Public Health. She has participated in and led firm initiatives to support strategic planning; wellness; and equity, diversity and inclusion.
Kaitlyn Boniecki, BS ’19, MArc ’21, MUD ’21, Cleveland, OH, joined Bialosky Cleveland as an architectural designer in 2021. She was honored with a citation at the AIA Cleveland Design Awards for her thesis, “Designing for Dystopia,” in 2021, marking her second AIA award for student work. She is active in her design community, particularly in AIA Cleveland’s Women in Architecture Committee and The Architecture Lobby. Notable projects include the Lincoln Heights Townhomes, the Hawthorne School rehabilitation and renovation, and the Euclid Waterfront facility.
Kemet Floyd, BS ’19, Youngstown, OH, joined Bialosky Cleveland as an architectural designer in 2022. He graduated with a bachelor's degree in architecture and a minor in sustainability. He is pursuing a master’s degree in architecture at Kent State, after starting the program at Boston Architectural College. His work is exhibited through the national online catalogue, SAY IT LOUD, accompanied by a physical traveling exhibit of prominent diverse designers. He has designed brand identities for several small businesses during his emerging career. He is an active member of the local chapters of the American Institute of Architects and the National Organization for Minority Architects.
2020s
2020s
Spring Ashmore, BA ’20, Uniontown, OH, an operations technology professional (OTP) for locally owned Tomtreyco McDonald’s, headquartered in Uniontown, won the Marty Ruby Award for OTP Pro of the Year. This award recognizes one McDonald’s employee annually for executing operational excellence and driving growth through technology.
Ashmore joined McDonald’s in 2007 as a crew member at the Hartville, Ohio, restaurant, and since 2011 has managed an operations technology professional team that ensures that all register, computer, headsets, music, telephone, internet and camera systems are working across Tomtreyco’s 48 McDonald’s restaurants.
The Marty Ruby Award was created in remembrance of California McDonald’s operator, Marty Ruby, who passed away in 2019. Ruby was passionate about the OTP program and worked tirelessly to improve it.
Kelly Deak, BS ’20, Cleveland Heights, OH, joined Bialosky Cleveland as an architectural designer in 2021. She is pursuing certification as a green roof professional. She has volunteered for the ACE Mentorship program, which exposes high school students to the fields of architecture, construction and engineering. With an affinity for sustainability, she aims to create architecture that acts as a working system with the environment, rather than against it. Her conceptual works have appeared in digital architectural publications, including Dezeen, SUCKERPUNCH and The Archiologist. Notable projects include Fairfax Market mixed use and space planning for the Westlake Porter Public Library.
Brianna Gordon, BA ’20, Cleveland, OH, is a Centennial Plaza programming assistant and hospitality facilitator at the Pro Football Hall of Fame, as well as a Ross Xpression and Blaze operator. Recently, the president of the hall of fame asked her to update the video archives so they have individual videos of every Hall of Famer’s football career, including speeches and pictures from their playing days. Gordon graduated with a degree in digital media production and a concentration in television from the School of Media and Journalism.
Sarah Contos-Holden, BA ’21, Lakewood, OH, joined Bialosky Cleveland as an interior designer in 2021, after her semester-long internship with the firm. With strengths in interior design and marketing, she brings value to both design projects and social media/marketing efforts at the firm. She volunteers for the ACE Mentorship program, which allows high school students to explore the fields of architecture, construction and engineering. She is on the design team for the James M. Ashley and Thomas W.L. Ashley U.S. Courthouse in Toledo, Ohio.
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Note: Due to budget cuts, we are no longer printing or mailing a print edition of Kent State Magazine. The current digital edition can be found at www.kent.edu/magazine/. You may view links to Class Notes and In Memory in the Alumni Life section at the bottom of the magazine home page.