GSAS Board of Directors' Biographical Information

Graduate School Alumni Society (GSAS)

As of July 1, 2008

Officers

Marianne E. Hazel, B.S. '90, M.Ed. '95 (President)
Marianne is the assistant director of student teaching. In that role, she supervises elementary education student teachers on a full time basis. Previously, Marianne was a central office administrator, an elementary administrator and reading supervisor, and an elementary teacher. Marianne volunteers for several local organizations and serves on several boards of directors, including the Immaculata University Alumnae Board of Governors. Additionally, she is involved in numerous University committees, is a member of several professional organizations, and is a reviewer of two professional education journals. In addition to her degrees from Penn State, Marianne holds a doctoral degree in educational leadership from Immaculata University and a master of science degree in administration from McDaniel College.

Kevin R. Steele, J.D. '92 (Immediate Past President and Chair, Nominating Committee)
Kevin serves as the chief of the Trials Division in the Montgomery County District Attorney's Office in Pennsylvania where he oversees the following units: Arson, Domestic Violence, Drugs, Economic Crimes, Grand Jury, Insurance Fraud, Major Crimes, and Sex Crimes. Prior to his current position, he served as the captain of the Narcotics Unit and was appointed special deputy attorney general.

Before joining the Montgomery County District Attorney's Office in 1995, Kevin served as a deputy district attorney in Dauphin County for three years. Previously, Kevin worked for the Department of Justice, Wilmington, Delaware; United States Attorney's Office, Washington, D.C.; and the United States Secret Service, Washington, D.C. Kevin is an adjunct professor of criminal law at Cabrini College and lectures for the Pennsylvania District Attorney's Institute, as well as numerous other law enforcement agencies.

Kevin received his master of laws degree in trial advocacy from Temple University, his law degree from the Dickinson School of Law, and his undergraduate degree in criminal justice from The George Washington University.

At Large Members

Eric A. Alfonsi , B.S. '63, M.S. '77
Eric is professor of electronics and computer engineering technology at DeVry University in Fort Washington, PA. Prior to joining DeVry, Eric was a senior engineer and program manager for the Department of Defense for over thirty years, where he oversaw the development of advanced avionics systems for a variety of Navy and Marine aircraft. He co-authored a number of publications, received two U.S. patents, and was awarded the Navy Meritorious Civilian Service Medal. Eric earned his B.S. in electrical engineering at Penn State University Park, and his M.S. in engineering science from the Penn State Great Valley School of Graduate Professional Studies. He later returned to Penn State Great Valley as an adjunct faculty member, where he taught graduate-level courses in engineering. A member of the Penn State Alumni Association, he and his wife, Eldora, reside in Newtown Square, PA.

F. Alan Andersen , M.S. '69, Ph.D. '72 (Co-chair, Professional Development Committee)
Alan is the director and scientific coordinator of Cosmetic Ingredient Review. Previously, he was employed at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for twenty-two years, most recently as the appointed head of a group responsible for pre-market clearance of medical devices. Alan has received numerous awards including the Public Health Service Superior Service Award, the FDA Award of Merit, Employees EEO Recognition Award, and a Sigma Xi Award of Recognition. He has also served as a radiation biological effects consultant to the World Health Organization and chaired the American National Standards Institute's Medical Device Standards Board. Alan is past president and a former member of the Board of Directors of CLSI (formerly NCCLS), an international, interdisciplinary, nonprofit, and educational organization that promotes the development and use of voluntary consensus standards and guidelines relating to clinical testing in the laboratory. After graduating from Muhlenberg College in 1966, Alan was awarded his M.S. in 1969 and Ph.D. in 1972 in biophysics from Penn State.

Onker N. Basu, Ph.D. '92 (International Alumni Representative)
Onker is currently the senior vice president and head of Strategy and Planning of the Client Services Group at KeyBank in Cleveland, Ohio. Prior to joining KeyBank, Onker held positions with National City Bank as senior vice president and director of Strategy, Planning and Channel Sales of Small Business Banking, as well as vice president and general manager of Information Services. Prior to National City Bank, he worked for consulting firms such as Nextera, IBM and PricewaterhouseCoopers, where he held several leadership positions, driving significant strategic and transformational engagements for Fortune 500 companies across multiple industries. Onker was also an assistant professor at the University of Akron, where he conducted applied and theoretical research and taught finance and accounting. He has published and presented papers in numerous business journals and conferences. Onker has extensive experience in strategic business planning, technology strategy and leading large-scale transformation initiatives. He also has extensive P&L experience, while focusing on enhancing multi-channel sales, market segmentation, customer contact strategies, and building specialty business lines. He is a graduate of the Ph.D. program in business with a concentration in accounting and organizational theory. In addition, he holds an MBA in finance and a bachelor's degree in accounting from the University of Bombay, India.

Riad G. Dirani, B.S. ’94, Ph.D. '99
Riad is currently the director/team leader, Outcomes Research for Ortho-McNeil Janssen Scientific Affairs, a division of Johnson & Johnson, located in Titusville, NJ. At Johnson & Johnson, Riad is the therapeutic area lead for the Psychiatry products in Outcomes Research. His responsibilities include leading the Psychiatry team, formulating integrated strategies to address business objectives, and supporting access/reimbursement and market expansion initiatives. Prior to joining Ortho-McNeil Janssen, he served as the director of U.S. Outcomes Research at Pfizer, Inc. in the respiratory products therapeutic area. Riad has received the Outstanding Achievement Award while at Pfizer and the Excellence in Research and Development Award while at GSK. He was also a finalist for the Young Research Investigator Award at the American Public Health Association. He is a member of the International Society for Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes Research, the American Psychiatric Association, the American Heart Association, and the American Thoracic Society. Riad is a graduate of the Ph.D. program in Health Policy and Administration with a concentration on health services and health economics. He also holds a bachelor’s degree in pre-medicine from Penn State.

Cynthia A. Mable, M.S. '71 (Co-chair, Communications Committee)
Cindy received her B.S. in mathematics in 1969 and her M.S. in computer science in 1971. Cindy also has a MBA in marketing from Temple University. She is a management consultant and assists clients in defining business plans, developing global marketing strategies, and facilitating change management programs. Cindy is also an adjunct professor at Strayer and DeVry universities. Formerly, she held executive positions with the consulting firms Ernst & Young and Deloitte & Touche and with Marriott International. Cindy has over twenty years of consulting experience in companies ranging from Fortune 500 companies to start-up technology companies.

George May, B.S. '71, M.S. '73, Ph.D. '76
George is the president and chief executive officer of the Institute for Technology Development, which utilizes satellite, aircraft and laboratory imaging sensors to solve real-world problems. Application areas include precision farming, forensics, skin care, food safety, ophthalmology, wound healing, and counter terrorism. Through his leadership, four start-up companies have been created that provide imaging products and services. In 2005, George was inducted into the Space Technology Hall of Fame, U.S. Space Foundation for his role in developing and commercializing imaging technology. In 2004, he received the Penn State College of Agricultural Sciences Outstanding Alumnus Award and in 2003, the Department of Crop and Soil Sciences Outstanding Alumni Award. He obtained all of his degrees in agronomy.

John C. Thompson III, Ph.D. '78
Jack is vice president of CTB/McGraw-Hill, responsible for field and sales operations on the East Coast. The company is based in Monterey, California, and develops and scores large-scale, high stakes testing programs under contracts with state departments of education, cities, and school districts. The company tests approximately 40 million students and adult learners annually, and employs 800 professionals, including 75 Ph.D. research scientists, psychometricians, and content experts. CTB/McGraw-Hill is owned by The McGraw-Hill Companies, which has annual revenues of $6.3 billion. Jack is a frequent presenter at the National Conference on Large Scale Assessment and at the National Council on Measurement in Education’s annual meeting; he has authored articles for the Studies in Educational Evaluation and for School Science and Mathematics. He is a member of Pi Lambda Theta, Phi Delta Kappa, and the National Association of Test Directors. Jack holds a Ph.D. in Curriculum from Penn State, with a minor in Educational Psychology, focusing on educational measurement and statistics. He and his wife, Barbara, have three grown children, reside in West Chester, Pennsylvania, and enjoy a round of golf.

Dianne Turner, D.Ed. '89
Dianne is a professor of art education at California State University, Bakersfield (CSUB), and the founding director of the CSUB Children’s Art Institute. She is responsible for advising, teaching and course development for art education in the teacher education department. In addition, she serves as chair for the school of education school academic council. Since 1989, she has partnered the department with more than seventy-five school districts to create a permanent exhibition of children’s artwork in the CSUB School of Education. Dianne has collaborated with the Getty Center for the Arts for a large scale Student Art Exhibition and assisted in creating exhibitions for a Graduate Symposium in which students are able to have their artwork valued as research. In addition, she has instituted practices such as bringing school-age children to national, state and local presentations to showcase art lessons taught in the classroom, as well as inviting them to attend undergraduate art education courses to learn and develop their artistic skills. As a reviewer of teacher credentialing, Dianne worked with two schools within the university to formulate their accreditation documents for the NCATE (National Council of Accreditation for Teacher Education) and the CCTC (California Credential for Teachers). She has served on the editorial board for a professional publication in the art education field. While a doctoral student at Penn State, Dianne placed in the graduate research exhibition as a representative for the College of Arts and Architecture. In addition to her degree from Penn State, Dianne received her master of arts degree from the University of South Carolina, and her bachelor of fine arts degree from Virginia Commonwealth University.

Du Wayne Meliotes, B.A. '66, M.S. '74
Du Wayne is currently a lecturer in the School of Management at ABAC University in Bangkok, Thailand. He has vast experience in public relations and was a news co-anchor and talk show host for a television station in Arlington, Virginia. Du Wayne is also a business consultant and former owner of a candy manufacturing and retail company. Formerly, he was a consultant in executive development for the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development in Washington, D.C. and a communications instructor for the Lebanese American University. Du Wayne received his B.A. in history and his M.S. in curriculum and instruction.

College/Campus Representatives

College of Agricultural Sciences- Kerry L. Golden, B.S. '91, M.Ed. '93
Kerry is the executive director of the Agriculture and Rural Affairs Committee for the Pennsylvania House of Representatives. As a legislative consultant on agricultural issues, she drafts legislation and manages information distribution and meetings for the committee, and most significantly has been directly involved in crafting farmland preservation program amendments over the past decade, changing the law to provide Small Business First loans to agricultural producers, and updating the state dog laws. She is also an instructor and lecturer of agriculture careers at Penn State Mont Alto. Actively involved in her community, Kerry was for seven years an elected official of the Middletown Borough Council, and is currently chairman of the Greater Middletown Economic Development Corporation Board of Directors. In 2005, she was honored with Penn States Alumni Achievement Award, and in 2003, she was recognized as an Outstanding Recent Alumni by the College of Agricultural Sciences. A scholar in the pioneer class of the Pennsylvanias Governor School for the Agricultural Sciences, Kerry earned her bachelor of science degree in 1991, and her master degree in agricultural and extension education in 1993, both from Penn State.

College of Arts and Architecture- Susan W. Schwartz, Ph.D. '95
Sue earned her A.B. '55 in music from Oberlin College and her Ph.D. '95 in architectural history from Penn State. Born in St. Louis and raised in Port Washington, NY, she has spent her adult life in a variety of locations, primarily small towns. Her role as "corporate wife" resulted from her husband's career at Corning, Inc. She also performed on and taught the piano and French Horn, drew, designed landscape plans, and researched and taught art history and architectural history. Currently she is the treasurer for the Friends of the Palmer Museum of Art at Penn State and maintains membership in the Society of Architectural Historians and the College Art Association. Volunteering, philanthropy, collecting and investing are areas in which she is active.

Smeal College of Business- Gregory E. Grose, B.S. '77, M.B.A. '80
Gregory is chief executive officer at Innodyn, LLC. where he directs the global expansion of the Central Pennsylvania based manufacturing company. Before joining Innodyn, his professional experience included twenty-five years in financial services, manufacturing and health care with Dow Chemical, Mellon Financial Services, Lewistown Healthcare Foundation and PNCBank. He has been a guest lecturer for Penn State’s Small Business Development Center, a part time instructor in Continuing and Distance Education and a judge on the Penn State MBA Executive Panel. As an entrepreneur, he founded two small companies located in Central Pennsylvania. Greg has extensive experience in developing growth strategies, financial management models and organizational structures for small and mid-size companies.

College of Communications- Karen E. Kline, Ph.D. '99
Karen is professor and head of the Department of Communication and Philosophy at Lock Haven University. She has more than twenty-five years of college teaching experience in communication and media. She also serves as an academic advisor to more than fifty students each semester. In her role as a department head, she is responsible for handling the student and administrative needs for fourteen full-time faculty who are teaching in the areas of philosophy, communication studies and communication media. Previously, she taught courses at Penn State, Marywood College and Temple University. Karen has authored and co-authored numerous articles in scholarly publications and presented at many professional conferences. She has also been honored with a number of awards, most recently earning the 2006 President's Award for Outstanding Faculty Service at Lock Haven University. Karen holds a B.S. degree in communication studies from Northwestern University, a M.A. degree in communications from Temple University, and a Ph.D. in mass communications from Penn State.

College of Earth and Mineral Sciences- Eric Minford, B.S. '76, Ph.D. '83 (Co-chair, Professional Development Committee)
Eric is a lead research engineer in the Advanced Gas Separation group at Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Eric earned a B.S. and a Ph.D. in ceramic science from Penn State. His professional interests include interdisciplinary research in the areas of membrane and membrane reactor design and operation and the development of ceramic to metal seals for extreme environment applications. Eric is also a volunteer firefighter and a First Aid, CPR, & AED instructor for the Red Cross. He is active with his church, the Boy Scouts, and the United Way. Eric is married with two sons, one a Penn State alumni and the other a Penn State student.

College of Education- Dan West, B.S. '71, M.Ed. '72, Ph.D. '82 (Chair, Global Development Committee)
Dan is the chairman and professor in the Department of Health Administration and Human Resources, University of Scranton. He teaches in the Graduate School at the University of Scranton and has specialized in international health care, globalization, multiculturalism and diversity management. He holds a professor in Public Health appointment at Trnava University, Slovakia and a visiting professor appointment at the University of Matej Bel in Slovakia. He was recently appointed affiliated faculty at Tbilisi State Medical University, Department of Public Health and Health Management, Tbilisi, Georgia. He is president and chief executive officer of HTC Consulting Group, Inc. He is a certified healthcare consultant with the American Association of Healthcare Consultants, and board certified in healthcare management by the American College of Healthcare Executives.

Dan has been a CEO for a hospital, medical practice and several health care businesses. In addition to thirty years of health care management, consulting and leadership experience, Dan maintains Fellowship with the American College of Healthcare Executives, American College of Medical Practice Executives, American Academy of Medical Administrators, American College of Health Care Administrators, American Academy of Behavioral Medicine, and Association of Behavioral Healthcare Management. He serves on the Board of Directors for the Health Care Management Forum of Northeastern Pennsylvania and the Regents Advisory Council for Northeast Pennsylvania. Other Board memberships include the Healthy Northeast Pennsylvania Initiative, Scranton Temple Residency Program, Medical Advisory Board of the International Brain Trauma Association, Scranton Temple Residency Program IRB, and the Behavioral Health Research Institute. He is recognized as in International Fellow at the University of Scranton and serves on several University committees.

College of Engineering- Vacant

College of Health & Human Development- Vacant

College of the Liberal Arts- Vacant

Eberly College of Science- James C. Weaver, Ph.D. '76
Jim is director of the Eastman Kodak Research Laboratories, the organization within Kodak that is responsible for the innovation of disruptive technologies for digital imaging, digital printing and display systems. Beginning his career with Kodak in 1976, Jim has worked on the chemistry, physics and imaging science of many different imaging devices, components and systems, and has held leadership roles in both research and strategic planning. An active volunteer, Jim served on the Eberly College of Science Alumni Society Board of Directors from 1999-2005. In addition, he is a member of the American Chemical Society, and Sigma Xi, the Scientific Research Society. Jim received his Bachelor of Science degree in chemistry from Wilkes College in 1971, his doctoral degree in physical chemistry from Penn State in 1976, and his master of business administration degree from the University of Rochester in 1985, where he was also awarded the Hugh Whitney Award for scholastic achievement.

Penn State College of Medicine- Vacant

Dickinson School of Law - John J. Miravich, Esq., J.D. '89 (Co-chair, Communications Committee)
John is a partner in the national law firm of Fox Rothschild LLP; he concentrates a significant part of his practice in various aspects of municipal law, municipal and tax-exempt finance, and government affairs issues and in advising local governments on numerous legal and financial issues. In this role, he represents various municipalities on litigation concerning challenges to their formation, taxing authority and ability to levy fees. He also represents private entities in litigation, including construction, commercial, unfair competition and employment disputes, and advises on litigation avoidance and prevention and insurance coverage issues.Previously, John was a shareholder in the regional law firm of Stevens & Lee. While in law school, John was a student editorto theHonorable Dale F. Shugart, PA Civil Practice, as well as serving as internclerk to the Honorable John E. Lavelle of the Schuylkill County Court of Common Pleas. John serves as president of the Dickinson School of Law Alumni Association and is president of the Berks/Schuylkill/Lebanon Chapter of the Penn State Alumni Association. He earned a bachelor of arts degree from Bloomsburg University in 1986 and was awarded his law degree from the Dickinson School of Law in 1989.

Penn State Erie, The Behrend College- Vacant

Penn State Great Valley - Vacant

Penn State Harrisburg - Monica J. Jones, M.P.A., '06
As the grants coordinator at Messiah College, Monica writes grants supporting scholarship and annual fund projects and provides support during the pre-award phase of grant procurement. She currently serves on the Board of Directors for the Lancaster County Urban League. Previously, Monica was a graduate assistant at Penn State Harrisburg from 2004 to 2006, and served as an assistant coordinator for Resident Life in 2006. As a graduate student, she also did an internship with the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency as a research and policy analyst in 2005, and was the president of the Graduate Student Association at Penn State Harrisburg from 2005-2006. Before coming to Penn State, Monica was the assistant to the director of Heritage and Cultural Development for the Mississippi Development Authority and from 2003-2004, she was Mississippi's Miss Hospitality--the first African American to have the title in the pageant's fifty-four-year history. In this role, she served as a state ambassador to promote economic development and tourism. While serving as MS Miss Hospitality, Monica was also Miss Jackson State University 2003-2004--the University's official student representative. Monica earned a master's degree in public administration from Penn State in 2006, and a bachelor of arts in political science from W.E.B. Du Bois Honors College at Jackson State University in 2004, where she graduated cum laude.

Monica is a recipient of numerous awards including: the Most Outstanding Graduate Student Award from the Penn State Harrisburg Alumni Society in 2006; the Kathryn Towns Award from Penn State Harrisburg in 2005; the Hometown Hero Award from the Jackson Mississippi Convention and Visitors Bureau in 2004; the Resolution of Achievement granted by the Mississippi House of Representatives in 2004; and the Jacksonian Award of Excellence from the Jackson State University National Alumni Association in 2004.

Intercollege Graduate Degree Programs- Steven E. Linberg, M.S. '75, Ph.D. '78 (Chair, Awards Committee)
Steve serves as managing director and treasurer, and is a member of the Board of Directors for Chiesi Pharmaceuticals Inc., a wholly owned U.S. subsidiary of Chiesi Farmaceutici, Società Per Azioni (S.p.A.), Parma, Italy. He has more than twenty-five years of both academic clinical research, and drug and biologics development experience, with expertise in directing overall program development, and in individual trial design, execution and reporting. His experience includes the primary direction of complete drug development programs from investigational new drugs to new drug applications that resulted in FDA approval. Prior to joining Chiesi, Steve initially worked as a faculty member and clinical investigator in academia. He has since held senior positions in the drug and biologics industry and at contract research organizations. Steve is the editor and a contributing author to the text Expediting Drug and Biologics Development, approaching its third edition, and is also a member of the part-time graduate faculty for the Johns Hopkins University, School of Arts and Sciences. Currently, he serves as president-elect of the Graduate School Alumni Society. Steve received both a M.S. and a Ph.D. in applied physiology from Penn State.

Graduate Student Association Representative- Alfonso Mendoza (President, GSA)
Alfonso is president of the Graduate Student Association and a Ph.D. candidate in Materials Science and Engineering.

Graduate Student Association Representative- Deshmukh Kuldeep (Graduate School Alumni Society Representative, GSA)
Deshmukh serves as the Graduate School Alumni Society Representative for the Graduate Student Association, and is a Ph.D. candidate in Industrial Engineering.

Graduate Student Association Representative- Wael Yousef (International Graduate Student Representative, GSA)
Wael serves as the International Graduate Student Representative for the Graduate Student Association, and is a Ph.D. candidate in Engineering Science and Mechanics.

Past Presidents

Kevin R. Steele , 2005-2007
J.D. '92
(See Officers)

Tom C. Hogan, 2003-2005
M.P.A. '77, M.R.P. '83
Tom is director of the Office Worldwide Faculty Recruitment and Appointments at the University of Maryland University College. Prior to his current position, he spent twenty-three years with AT&T with assignments in sales, sales support, business development, marketing and human resources. In his last assignment with AT&T, Tom was director of Strategic Talent Acquisition, Workforce Diversity and EO/AA. Tom is currently an assistant adjunct professor at the University of Maryland University College and will be teaching Strategic Management fall 2006. He has served on a number of Board of Directors and advisory bodies including the HBCU Deans of the Business Schools Roundtable Corporate Advisory Board, National Society of Hispanic MBAs Corporate Advisory Board, and Stevens Institute of Technology Masters of Science Management Degree Program Advisory Board. An active member of the Penn State Alumni Association, he is an elected member of Alumni Council and serves on the Executive Committee.

Martha L. Starling, 2001-2003
M.S. '66, Ph.D. '69
Marty is a community volunteer in diverse activities, including Downtown State College Partnership, community flower gardens, and fundraising for the school district. She is immediate past chair of the board of the Centre County Community Foundation and is former chair of the Centre County United Way. Last year, the Chamber of Business and Industry of Centre County named her the Volunteer of the Year, and Penn State recognized her as Renaissance Woman of the Year. Previously, Marty was the director of Development in Penn State's College of Health and Human Development, and the director of Alumni Relations for the college. Marty served previously as the president of the College of Health and Human Development Alumni Society (1972-74), as a member of Penn State Alumni Council (1972-1980 and 1984-87), and as a member of Alumni Council Executive Board (1978-1980 and 1984-85).

William A. Burgess, 1997-2001
B.S. '65, M.B.A. '72
Bill received his B.S. in agricultural business and management and his M.B.A., majoring in marketing. Bill has over thirty years of corporate management and management consulting experience in competitive strategy and new business development. He has extensive experience in facilitating transformation and change programs for executive teams of Fortune 100 corporations. Bill is a qualified expert witness in the U.S. Federal Court System for his expertise in consumer goods marketing and new business development.

M. Susan Barger, 1995-1997
Ph.D. '82 (First president)
Susan received her Ph.D. through the interdisciplinary program in the humanities. Her dissertation was a materials science study of the daguerreotype, and she is an internationally known expert on the daguerreotype display and conservation. Susan is an adjunct professor in both the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences and the Department of Anthropology at the University of New Mexico. She is also a conservation scientist and serves as a consultant to museums, art dealers, and private collectors.

Past At Large Members

Waddell A. Biggart, II (deceased), Ph.D. '61

Joanne B. Blanchard-Brown, Ph.D. '97

Velma Deleveaux, Ph.D. '97

Sandra L. Groves, Ph.D. '85

Tom C. Hogan, M.P.A. '77, M.R.P. '83

Hilton J. Klein, V.M.D., M.S. '74

Barbara R. Price, M.A. '67, Ph.D. '74

Claire Huschka Sink, M.A. '68