Do you have a professor that is exceptionally outstanding? Show your appreciation!

If you will be graduating in December 2009, either undergraduate or graduate, you are invited to nominate an outstanding professor. From now until December 11^th at 4:00 p.m., students can nominate their favorite professor for the Outstanding Teaching Award, sponsored by the Teaching and Learning Enhancement Center (TALE).

Two professors will be selected by a panel after careful consideration of the entrees. Nominations will be combined with May/August graduate nominations and the two winners will be announced at the May 2010 graduation ceremonies.

The two selected professors will receive a plaque that is awarded to them, and their name will be added to a plaque in the TALE Center. The professors also receive a monetary award that may be used toward any professional development, including, but not limited to, attending a conference, furthering education, or supplies that will enhance their programs.

Students who nominated previous award winning teachers expressed that the professors are enthusiastic and have excellent instructing style, sincere concern with students’ success, and have served as role models as professionals for students. The panel for this selection consists of a professor from each college that has previously received this award and a co-chairperson from the TALE Center.

All nominations and essays will be kept entirely confidential. A professor may only receive the award once every ten years.

Go to http://iit.bloomu.edu/award now to start your nomination!

If you have any problems with the form for submission contact, contact Lisa Stallbaumer-Beishline at lstallba@bloomu.edu or 570-389-4310 in the Teaching and Learning Enhancement Center (TALE), located in 1231 McCormick.

Herring, BU’s vice president for university and student affairs for 15 years, died in July following a long battle with cancer. His widow, Virginia; son, Bryce; and daughter, Ashleigh Spiegel, along with BU President David Soltz and former BU President Jessica S. Kozloff, announced the two annual awards before BU’s homecoming football game Saturday, Oct. 17. They are:

- The H. Preston Herring Student Affairs Scholarship for a student in the counseling/student affairs graduate program. To be eligible, a student must have a grade point average of 3.2 or higher and undergraduate leadership experience in student affairs.

- The H. Preston Herring Athletic Scholarship for a student athlete involved in any intercollegiate varsity sport. Applicants must have at least 30 credits and demonstrate integrity, strong academic commitment and leadership qualities.

Chris Keller, admissions director, said Herring understood the importance of scholarships to BU’s students. “He would be thrilled people are establishing these scholarships and he is able to help students,” Keller said. “To me, Preston was both a mentor and a friend. I’ve never known anyone else like him.”

“I don’t think Preston realized how many lives he impacted – friends, professionals and the students he came in contact with,” said Linda Sowash, director of residence life. “He was committed to the mission of student affairs, to offering positive experiences for students outside the classroom. He worked tirelessly to ensure that students were satisfied at their ‘home away from home’ with quality housing and campus dining. The greatest gift he gave many of us was his unwavering courage, determination and faith.”

Mary Gardner, BU’s athletic director, also spoke of Herring’s dedication to students. “Those of us who worked closely with Preston will always remember him as a man who was totally selfless and committed to the students and staff he served. He was a mentor who guided many of us and supported numerous initiatives that will have a lasting impact on students who attend the university. I feel very fortunate to have had the opportunity to work with him for the past 15 years. He made a difference in the lives of those he touched.”

The H. Preston Herring scholarships will be awarded for the first time for the 2010-2011 academic year.

Danielle Lynch '07 Photo Courtesy of Bloomsburg: The University Magazine

Danielle Lynch ‘07 sat at her office desk and read over notes in deep concentration, while writing an article for The Daily Local News based in West Chester, Pa. She covers a news beat which includes a couple school districts and other areas in Chester County.

The newspaper industry is struggling to survive with advertising and sales revenue significantly down and layoffs becoming a common occurrence. It is a trying time to be a print journalist.

Nevertheless, Lynch has seen early success in her career consisting of two years as a news reporter for the publication. She earned several awards in her short career as a journalist for co-writing a four-part series about poverty in Chester County.

These awards include an honorable mention from the Suburban Newspapers of America, a first place award from the Pennsylvania Associated Press Managing Editors for best example of public service, a first place award from the Philadelphia Society of Professional Journalists, and a third place honor from the Philadelphia Press Association.

She credits her success to Bloomsburg University’s on-campus media which provided her with helpful knowledge and experience. She worked at The Voice newspaper, and spent two years with Spectrum Magazine where she was executive editor during her senior year.

The BU alumna portrayed classic journalistic qualities of curiosity and resourcefulness in the newsroom as she prepared for her next story. “Sure we can talk off the record, I am just fishing around right now,” Lynch said as she communicated over the phone with a source. Her latest story concerns how administrators at a local elementary school treat students with special needs.

Presently, times are changing for journalists and newspapers as the industry has terminated print editions in a several large U.S. cities this year including The Rocky Mountain News in Denver, and the Seattle Post-Intelligencer.

Major cities still have newspapers for now, but many papers are facing possible bankruptcy, according to a research report titled 2009 Project for Excellence in Journalism done by the PEW Research Center. While news is displayed on TV or the Internet; the print industry has tried to respond by putting its content online. Still this has done little to help the economic issue.

There are many factors that explain the current downfall of newspapers. But, the main reason arguably is due to the economic recession. During 2008, about 5,000 full-time jobs were cut in newsrooms, PEW reports. The research also predicts the trend will continue in 2009 as it expects 20-25% fewer newsroom employees than in 2001. Although, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) states, “The continued demand for news will create some job opportunities.”

Meanwhile, Lynch arrived at the elementary school where she planned to report about a private meeting to be held between the principal and the parents of the special needs children. Lynch radiated with confidence and showed courage as she approached the distressed parents.

Also joining Lynch at the potential news scene was a local NBC10 broadcaster. The representatives of two different media worked together, observing and taking notes about answers to the other reporter’s questions.

Electronic media, more specifically TV broadcast, often attract viewers because they add brief video and emotion to news. Their condensed style allows a station to cover numerous stories in a short amount of time. Cable news has seen its audience size increase by almost 40% and therefore profits have grown by a third in 2008 according to the DOL.

Will newspapers be around in the next five or 10 years? The answer relies on whether the industry can find a way to rebound from its current crisis.

“I will put my own slant on it,” Lynch said with assurance, mindful that she will compete over an audience with media competition of the NBC10 show to air prior to her article.

This story was assisted by the author’s job shadow experience on Monday, May 18, 2009.

The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins hockey team is hosting a Sports Career Fair from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. on Wednesday, March 25 at Wachovia Arena in Wilkes-Barre, Pa.  Recruiters will be seeking applicants in the fields of sales, administration, media, fitness, operations, and more.

Sports-related vendors and organizations in the region are looking for applicants in the fields of sports medicine, fitness and exercise,  communications,  marketing, among others, and they have come together all in one convenient location.

 Tickets are $17 in advance or $20 at the door and include entrance to the Career Fair, a ticket to the Penguins game versus Grand Rapids at 7 p.m., and a Penguins hat.

Confirmed Recruiters:
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins
Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees
East Stroudsburg University
Reading Phillies
Frozen Ropes Baseball Academy
WBRE TV
ESPN Radio
Odyssey Fitness
Valley YMCA
SMG Marketing
Wachovia Arena

For more information, or to register as an employer or vendor, please contact Mike Chatburn at   (570) 208-5415  or MCHATBURN@wbspenguins.com.

Sarah Antonacci

Sarah Antonacci walks confidently out of Bakeless, an academic building on the campus of Bloomsburg University, after her last 8 a.m. final of the semester, and of her college career. Walking in itself may not seem like an accomplishment, but for Antonacci, who just seven years ago learned she had Multiple Sclerosis and has been in and out of a wheelchair since, it is. 

Multiple Sclerosis, also called MS, is a chronic disease that attacks the central nervous system.  This disease is at times disabling, and thought to be an autoimmune disease, as often times the body’s own immune system will attack the substance around the nerve fibers in the central nervous system, damaging them and causing distorted and interrupted nerve impulses to travel to and from the brain and spinal cord.  Every case of MS is different, and every person who has the disease reacts differently to it.

In July 2001, Antonacci began experiencing optic neuritis, which is an inflammation of the optic nerve.  When her eyes began to cross, and she was experiencing double vision, Antonacci went to a neuro-opthamologist.  “He thought I had a lazy eye.  He was going to do surgery to cut the muscle in my eye.  I wanted a second opinion,” Antonacci says. 

She was referred to a pediatric neurologist at Geisinger Hospital in Danville. In the meantime, her symptoms progressed, and Antonacci experienced extreme headaches, numbness and tingling in her arms and legs, and by October of the same year, she was confined to a wheelchair.  An issue that one doctor thought was a lazy eye, was obviously something much more extreme.

Antonacci went through a series of tests at Geisinger, including having a Magnetic Resonance Imaging scan (MRI), a lumbar puncture, commonly known as a spinal tap, and countless rounds of blood work.   “I’m sure they thought it was MS, but they just had to confirm it,” Antonacci says.  During the testing, she was hospitalized for a week, while she received high doses of a steroid that helped to suppress her immune system so it was unable to attack itself.  This allowed partial relief of the inflammation in her muscles that Antonacci was experiencing.

On Valentine’s Day, 2002, Antonacci started chemotherapy.  “The progression [of the MS] was so rapid I had lost all ability to do anything independently.  I even needed to be fed.”  A little over a month later, she was out of the wheelchair temporarily and doing things on her own again due to her treatments.  She couldn’t walk as fast as she had before, but she was walking. 

She still had to undergo chemotherapy treatments once every month for six months, and then every three months for a year even though she was walking again, just to make sure it wasn’t a temporary fix.  “It worked,” Antonacci says, shrugging her shoulders and adjusting her black book bag on her back.  “I’ve been in and out of a wheelchair over the years, but I always come out because of the medications.”

When Antonacci came to Bloomsburg, she entered as an Accounting major, but over the years, she decided it would be best to switch her major to English, with a minor in Anthropology.  Antonacci coordinates with Accommodative Services on campus, to help make classes and treatments more convenient.  Currently, she receives monthly treatments of a steroid called Decadron, which eases inflammation, and helps to keep existing symptoms such as numbness, and tingling, especially in her legs, at bay.  “I have my ups and downs, but it has never affected my grades,” Antonacci says.          

Even though she changed her major, Antonacci will still be graduating in the anticipated four years.  “It’s amazing, because my neurologists told me that it would take me at least five years to graduate, if I even finished school because of my health issues.” 

After graduation, Antonacci is looking forward to moving into a townhouse with her sister Kimmy, 22.  “I’m scared,” Antonacci says, grabbing the straps of her book bag and beginning to walk toward her car parked behind Bakeless.  “I have to get a job that I can physically do.  Otherwise, though, I’m excited.”

Opening the door of her car and tossing her backpack inside, Antonacci pauses for a moment before stepping inside.  “The doctors tell me one day I’ll inevitably be in a wheelchair.”  She shakes her head and smiles. “There are no other treatments left for me to receive that are strong enough to work.”  As she climbs inside and puts on her seatbelt, she adds, almost as an afterthought, but in classic Antonacci style, “There are two sides to everything.  Good, and bad.  Old and new.  If my legs fail me, at least I’d still have my arms.”

The Russian government awarded Irena’s great-grandmother, grandmother, and sister three month allowances to exit the communist establishment and visit the aging brother in Pennsylvania. Before making the journey across the ocean, Irena’s sister discovered that she was expecting a baby. Because she was pregnant, Irena’s sister could not accompany her family members on their trip.

Martin and Irena’s family lived in the small village of Nizna Hutka, which is located right outside of Kosice, the second largest city in Slovakia.  At the time, the only airport was in Prague, so Irena’s uncle went with them on the train from Kosice to the airport in Prague.

“The entire train ride they kind of noticed a man who stood out from everyone else. In a creepy sort of way, I guess” recalls Pastor of his mother’s story. Pastor said his family had to stay in a night in Prague, which is where his uncle ran into the same man from the train and offered to buy him a drink.

“Well, he got the man drunk and found out that he was a KGB spy sent to keep my mom from getting on the plane.”

The next day at the airport, the KGB spy stopped Irena as she began to board the plane. He allowed her to board the American bound plane, but told her that he would be waiting for her in that same spot when she returned in three months. He gave her three months to the day.

Three months had passed and Irena did not return to that airport as she was supposed to.  Being from a small village in a controlled country, Irena’s family was shamed and her belongings confiscated.  Soon after, letters arrived demanding Irena’s immediate return and imprisonment.  She stayed, then soon after, in 1986, Martin came along.
In 1989 the Berlin Wall fell. Czechoslovakia was no longer part of communist Russia.  This was accompanied by a letter of good-will to the young mother Irena, allowing her safe return and a pardon of her previous sentence. 

Slovakia declared independence in 1992 and in 1993, Pastor and his mother traveled back to Slovakia to stay.  A year passed and Martin and Irena made the trip back to Pennsylvania. 

“We came back to Berwick to sell everything we owned and settle in Slovakia for good,” said Pastor.  “However, once we were there for a couple of days, we decided that the opportunities and education here were better.”
In 2004, Pastor graduated from Berwick High School.  On Saturday, December 13, 2008, he graduated from Bloomsburg University.
Pastor plans to pursue his musical career and take advantage of all that life has to offer. 

Pastor’s mother’s biggest dreams came true for her son, making everything she risked and fought for all worth while.
“Her name is Irena Davis,” said Pastor. ”I don’t know what my mom’s dreams were when she came over.  I’m sure the sky was the limit for a young girl in her 20’s coming from a poor village in Eastern Europe.”

“For me, I’ve always hoped for happiness with whatever I did in life,” said Pastor. ”Music does it for me. It takes me away from the stresses of life. I try to extend that to others by creating a moment with the audience; a moment that no one can touch or take away; it’s magical and I love it.”

In discussing his relationship with his mother, Pastor stated, “My mom has been the best when it comes to role models. Her life story goes much deeper than any story that I could tell. Whenever I feel doubt in something, I just look to her and she knows just how to turn the weight of the world into a feather.”

15th Annual Career and Internship Expo
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
12:00 Noon to 3:00 pm
Multi-A & B Kehr Union Building

Open to ALL Bloomsburg University students!

 BU alumni and representatives from numerous organizations will talk with students regarding career information, internships and jobs upon graduation! Graduate schools will also attend! Dress is campus casual; however, we encourage seniors and juniors to dress in professional attire and bring resumes. For links to the participating organizations, visit www.bloomu.edu/careers.html and click on “Calendar of Events.”

 Questions? Contact the Career Development Center in 201 SSC at 570-389-4070.