April 18, 2017
Chambersburg, Pa. — Wilson College students will present the results of their undergraduate and graduate research at Wilson’s 8th annual Student Research Day on Friday, April 28. The public is invited to join Wilson students, faculty, staff and administrators at all events. A total of 29 students will present their work, which was produced in conjunction with faculty advisers, beginning at 9 a.m. Sessions will run concurrently in the Brooks Science Center auditorium and John Stewart Memorial Library’s Lenfest Learning Commons. In addition, a dance presentation choreographed and performed by students will be held at 11:30 a.m. in the dance studio in Davison Hall. All presentations will conclude by 5 p.m. In addition to the oral presentations, other students will share their work graphically in a poster session, to be held from 1 to 2:30 p.m., also in Brooks. “Student Research Day is an important day at Wilson College, providing a time to showcase the remarkable achievements of our students, “said Elissa Heil, vice president for academic affairs and dean of the faculty. “It’s also a celebration of our strong student and faculty collaboration, upon which Wilson College prides itself.” Oral presentations throughout the day focus on the humanities, sciences and social sciences, including the prestigious Disert Scholar session from 4:30 to 5 p.m. in the Brooks Complex. The Disert award, given to the student with the best honors thesis proposal, went this year to Anna Harutyunyan of Armenia, who will present the results of her research on how an iron derivative of the AIDS drug AZT (Fe-AZT) affects cancer cells in the liver. Other presentations will include examinations of: artist and feminist icon Frida Kahlo and the effect of her chronic physical pain on her self-portraits; the effects of gluten proteins and low-gliadin wheat products on celiac disease in mice; the relationship between outdoor recreation and depression; Christianity, capitalism and America’s devaluation of the poor; Holocaust remembrance and collective memory; a risk assessment for oak wilt – a threat to oak trees similar to that of Dutch elm disease – in Pennsylvania; pets and their relationship to their owners’ personality traits and self-esteem; factors that increase the contamination risk of pathogenic E.coli in the Conococheague Creek; and effects of apiary practices on Colony Collapse Disorder in European honey bees; Also on Student Research Day, Wilson senior Amanda Dunn will hold a capstone exhibition of her artwork in Wilson’s Bogigian Gallery. The exhibition will continue through May 14. Wilson’s Student Research Day will conclude with the annual Academic Awards presentation at 6 p.m. in the Brooks auditorium. Student Research Day at Wilson was founded in 2010 as a way to recognize and celebrate the research, scholarship and creative activities of students and their faculty mentors. For more information, visit www.wilson.edu/student-research-day. MEDIA CONTACT: Cathy Mentzer, Manager of Media Relations Phone: 717-262-2604 Email: cathy.mentzer@wilson.edu
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Founded in 1869, Wilson College is a private, coeducational liberal arts college offering bachelor’s degrees in 34 majors and master’s degrees in education, educational technology, special education, the humanities, accountancy, management, nursing, fine arts and healthcare management for sustainability. Wilson is committed to providing an affordable education that offers value to its students beyond graduation.
Located in Chambersburg, Pa., the college has a fall 2016 enrollment of 1,098, which includes students from 18 states and 16 countries. Visit www.wilson.edu for more information.
April 13, 2017
Chambersburg, Pa. — Five Wilson College students presented the results of their research and two were recognized with research grants at the 93rd Annual Meeting of the Pennsylvania Academy of Science, held March 31 to April 2 at King’s College in Wilkes-Barre, Pa.
The following students presented research: seniors Gaser Ahmed, a citizen of Egypt living in Chambersburg; Anna Harutyunyan of Armenia; and Vanessa Lybarger of Bedford, Pa.; and juniors Ahmed Alshahrani of Saudi Arabia and Tracy Dile of Orrstown, Pa. Ahmed and Harutyunyan were awarded a PAS Outstanding Research Grant for their projects.
Ahmed, who is majoring in biology and chemistry, presented his research project, Analysis of the Effects of Gluten Proteins and Low-Gliadin Wheat Products on Celiac Disease in NOD-DQ8 Mice. This study was performed to determine the effects of gluten, gliadin, glutenin and low-gliadin products on the progression of celiac disease, an autoimmune disorder triggered by the ingestion of a wheat gluten protein called gliadin; as well as to determine whether there is a maximum amount that is safe to consume in a mouse model prone to developing the disease. Results of the study will provide further information about the immunotoxicity of gliadin and glutenin, and the safety of consumption of low-gliadin products, which may set the stage for application in humans.
Ahmed received Wilson’s E. Grace White Summer Scholarship last year in support of his undergraduate research and also has received several Wilson chemistry awards. He was selected to participate in the 2016 Summit Health Summer Work Experience program.
Anna Harutyunyan of Armenia, who is majoring in biology and chemistry, presented a research project called Synthesis and Effects of Fe-AZT and Pd-AZT on Viability of Human Hepatocytes and Hepatocellular Carcinoma Cells. Hepatocellular carcinoma, the most common type of liver cancer, is the fifth-most common cancer and third-most common cause of cancer mortality around the world. It is difficult to treat due to early metastasis and progression. Harutyunyan’s study investigates the potential toxicity of an iron derivative of the AIDS drug AZT (Fe-AZT) in a cell culture model by analyzing cell viability. Results could provide evidence for using this compound as an anticancer treatment for liver cancer.
Harutyunyan received Wilson’s E. Grace White Summer Scholarship last year in support of her undergraduate research and also was a recipient the college’s Margaret Criswell Disert Honors Scholarship.
The students were accompanied to the PAS annual meeting by Wilson professors Deborah Austin, Brad Engle, Dana Harriger, Andrea Nagy, Christine Proctor and Brad Stiles. Five other students also attended the PAS meeting.
Students will share the results of their research during Wilson’s annual Student Research Day on April 28.
PAS judged oral presentations for scientific merit ¬- ranging from experimental methodologies to analysis of results - and presentation qualities, including visual impact and fielding of questions.
This is the sixth year for the award competition.
MEDIA CONTACT: Cathy Mentzer, Manager of Media Relations Phone: 717-262-2604 Email: cathy.mentzer@wilson.edu
Founded in 1869, Wilson College is a private, coeducational liberal arts college offering bachelor’s degrees in 34 majors and master’s degrees in education, educational technology, special education, the humanities, accountancy, management, nursing, fine arts and healthcare management for sustainability. Wilson is committed to providing an affordable education that offers value to its students beyond graduation. Located in Chambersburg, Pa., the college has a fall 2016 enrollment of 1,098, which includes students from 18 states and 16 countries. Visit www.wilson.edu for more information.
Chambersburg, Pa. — Wilson College President Barbara K. Mistick has been chosen as a recipient of the 2017 Women of Influence award, an annual Central Penn Business Journal program recognizing 30 of the midstate’s top women leaders.
The Women of Influence Award goes to women leaders who are influential in their companies, industries and communities; and have solid reputations based on their experience, integrity, leadership and accomplishments, according to CPBJ. Judges chose Mistick, who was nominated by the Harrisburg law firm Rhoads & Sinon, for her leadership and achievements at Wilson, as well as her contributions to the community.
“I am honored and humbled to be included among such an inspiring group of women in the midstate region,” said Mistick. “Women in leadership are not always recognized for their achievements, so I want to thank Central Penn Business Journal and the other sponsors for the Women of Influence awards program. I’m also grateful to Rhoads & Sinon for nominating me for this distinction.”
Mistick joined Wilson College on July 1, 2011. One her first actions was leading an initiative to transform the chronically under-enrolled institution, resulting in the expansion of coeducation and the creation of the Wilson Today plan, which set out five key areas of focus to improve Wilson’s enrollment levels. Wilson Today includes a “value plan” that has reduced or kept tuition steady for the past seven years and created a first-of-its-kind student loan buyback plan.
Mistick has also led an initiative to transform the campus, renovating three residence halls and constructing a new academic quad and main entrance for the institution. In addition, she successfully completed a $12 million fundraising campaign for the award-winning renovation and expansion of the John Stewart Memorial Library, reopening the building after four years of closure.
Under Mistick’s leadership, Wilson College has increased total enrollment from 695 students in fall 2012 to 1,098 students last fall —the largest class in Wilson’s history—and has added eight undergraduate programs, along with seven graduate programs.
“Wilson College's transition to a coeducational institution, followed by its subsequent growth, is a testament to Dr. Mistick's leadership and vision as president of Wilson,” said Drake Nicholas, an attorney with Rhoads & Sinon.
Prior to her unanimous appointment as Wilson’s president, Mistick was president of the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh, where she provided strategic leadership and operational oversight of the Pittsburgh public library system, which serves approximately 1.2 million people.
Mistick has a doctorate in management from Case Western Reserve University’s Weatherhead School of Business, a master’s degree in business administration from the University of Pittsburgh’s Joseph M. Katz Graduate School of Business, and a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Carlow College.
As an award winner, Mistick will be recognized at an event to be held June 26 at the Hilton Harrisburg, as well as in the June 30 issue of CPBJ.
MEDIA CONTACT: Cathy Mentzer, manager of media relations Phone: 717-262-2604 Email: cathy.mentzer@wilson.edu
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April 7, 2017
Chambersburg, Pa. — Wilson College sophomore Keion Adams has been named a Campus Compact 2017 Newman Civic Fellow, an honor given to “community-committed” students who have demonstrated “an investment in finding solutions for challenges facing communities throughout the country and abroad.”
Adams, one of 273 Newman Fellows named across the country, is the student director of Wilson’s campus food pantry and volunteers with the college’s Student-Athlete Mentor (SAM) program, which provides peer-to-peer mentorship and guidance for first-year students to help them adjust to the demands of college. He has been active in volunteerism since childhood.
Adams is majoring in exercise and sport science and is a Wilson College Curran Scholar. The son of Kim and Juanita Adams of Gaithersburg, Md., he is forward on the college’s men’s basketball team and was selected as one of the top 18 players in the North Eastern Athletic Conference for 2016-17. Campus Compact is a Boston-based, nonprofit coalition of more than 1,000 colleges and universities committed to “the public purposes of higher education.” Reserved for Campus Compact member institutions, the Newman Civic Fellowship honors the late Frank Newman, one of Campus Compact’s founders and a tireless advocate for civic engagement in higher education. The fellowship is a one-year experience emphasizing personal, professional and civic growth. Through the fellowship, Campus Compact provides a variety of learning and networking opportunities, including a national conference of Newman Civic Fellows in partnership with the Edward M. Kennedy Institute for the U.S. Senate. The fellowship, which is supported by the KPMG Foundation and Newman’s Own Foundation, also provides fellows with access to exclusive scholarship and post-graduate opportunities. “The cultivation of community-committed leaders has never been more crucial,” said Campus Compact President Andrew Seligsohn, who added that “our country needs more people who know how to bring communities together for positive change.” For more information about Campus Compact, visit www.compact.org. MEDIA CONTACT: Cathy Mentzer, Manager of Media Relations Phone: 717-262-2604 Email: cathy.mentzer@wilson.edu
April 5, 2017
Chambersburg, Pa. — Entrepreneur and education access advocate David Risher will address the senior class at the 147th annual Wilson College commencement ceremony, to be held at 1:30 p.m. Sunday, May 14.
Risher is the president and cofounder of Worldreader, an international organization that works to expand literacy in the developing world. With headquarters in San Francisco and offices around the world, Worldreader works to transform literacy by giving children in developing countries virtually unlimited access to local digital books through Kindles and cell phones, even creating an app for cell phone use. The organization has supported over six million readers worldwide over its first seven years.
“Reading and education unlock our potential,” the organization states on its website, www.worldreader.org. “Worldreader is on a mission to create a world where everyone can be a reader.”
A voracious reader himself, Risher played pivotal roles at Microsoft and Amazon before co-founding Worldreader in 2010. At Microsoft, he was general manager in charge of developing the company’s first database product, Microsoft Access. He left Microsoft in 1997 to join Amazon as its first vice president of product and store development. Under his leadership, Amazon grew from a small digital bookstore to “the everything store,” expanding sales from $16 million to more than $4 billion. Risher later became a senior vice president for the company, overseeing the marketing and general management of Amazon’s retail operations.
Risher graduated from Princeton University with a bachelor’s degree in comparative literature. After working for a time for a consulting firm and then bicycling across the country, he entered the MBA program at Harvard Business School, moving to Seattle after graduation and joining Microsoft.
Risher has a Wilson College connection – his mother, Sarah Walker Risher, is a 1963 graduate of the college.
Risher is a Draper Richards Kaplan Foundation Social Entrepreneur, a Microsoft Alumni Foundation Integral Fellow, and an invited member of the Clinton Global Initiative. He was named one of 12 Schwab Foundation Social Entrepreneurs of the Year 2016. He has lived in or visited 47 countries, speaks four languages and lives in San Francisco with wife Jennifer and two daughters.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE | March 29, 2016
Chambersburg, Pa. — The 2016-17 Orr Forum at Wilson College will host Professor Henry Mugabe, a theologian and president of the Zimbabwe Theological Seminary who will present two lectures on Tuesday, April 4. The lectures are free and open to the public.
Mugabe, who has been lauded for his work on theology from an African perspective, will give his first lecture at noon in the John Stewart Memorial Library’s Lenfest Learning Commons. In “A New Christianity in Africa: The Health and Wealth Gospel in a Sea of Poverty,” Mugabe will examine theologies of prosperity in the context of disease and poverty, raising the question of whether these theologies liberate or continue to enslave followers.
Mugabe’s second lecture, “The Practice of African Traditional Religion in Modern African Society,” will be held at 5 p.m., also in the library’s Learning Commons. In this presentation, Mugabe will discuss the practice of African Traditional Religion in modern African society, highlighting the nature of the religion and its ethical concerns for preserving and enhancing life.
Mugabe is teaching and preaching throughout the United States this spring as part of his goal of building partnerships between churches here and his native Zimbabwe, as well as with the Zimbabwe Theological Seminary. Mugabe has a doctorate from the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Ky. He has served as a visiting professor at the Wake Forest School of Divinity in Memphis, Tenn., and the Baptist Theological Seminary at Richmond in Virginia. The Society of Christian Ethics recently named him one of two Global Scholars for his work on theology from an African perspective.
Begun in 1964, the Orr Forum is Wilson College’s most widely known and prestigious academic event. Before the establishment of the Orr Forum, Wilson sponsored annually what was called “Devotional Week,” with a series of chapel services, sermons and a communion service. In 1962-63, Associate Professor of Bible and Religion Harry Buck and Professor Graham Jamieson, who chaired the Department of the Bible and Religion, proposed using a fund established by Thomas J. Orr in honor of his parents Mary and William, to start an endowed lecture series that would bring to campus outstanding thinkers in various aspects of religion studies. Topics addressed by the Orr Forum have reflected the wide and shifting interests in religion studies in America, including such topics as bioethics, race relations, the relationship of church and state, the nexus between religion and environmental issues, the AIDS crisis and contemporary Islam.
For more information visit: www.wilson.edu/common-hour.
MEDIA CONTACT: David True, Associate Professor of Religion Phone: 717-460-8228 Email: david.true@wilson.edu
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE | March 28, 2017
Chambersburg, Pa. — Wilson College’s on-campus volunteer, migrant education tutoring program, Learning Campus, has received approval from the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) and the Pennsylvania Campus Compact (PACC) for a second AmeriCorps/VISTA grant. The grant, which was first awarded a year ago, funds a full-time coordinator for the program.
The seven-year-old tutoring program, conducted in partnership with Lincoln Intermediate Unit 12, provides after-school tutoring for children of migrant farmworkers in the Chambersburg area. The program currently provides literacy and math enrichment services twice a week throughout the school year to children in kindergarten through fifth grade within the LIU’s Migrant Education Program. The Wilson students who volunteer to tutor – many of whom are majoring in education – also benefit from the program through experiential learning.
The AmeriCorps/VISTA coordinator, Wilson 2016 graduate Brie Burdge, recruits, trains and manages tutors for the Learning Campus program.
The Learning Campus program is overseen by Wilson Vice President for Student Development Mary Beth Williams, along with Lynn Newman, Wilson’s education division chair, and Eric Mandell, LIU student support specialist.
The AmeriCorps/VISTA program seeks to develop and support community service, service-learning and civic engagement programs at higher education institutions by placing AmeriCorps/VISTA members at colleges and universities across Pennsylvania.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE | March 24, 2017
Chambersburg, Pa. — The Kittochtinny Players, the drama club at Wilson College, will present three performances of the play, “Alice in Wonderland,” on Friday, March 31, and Saturday and Sunday, April 1 and 2, in Laird Hall. Performances will be at 7 p.m. Friday and Saturday, with a 2 p.m. matinee on Sunday.
The performances are free and open to the public. Door will open 30 minutes before show time.
Written by Eva Le Gallienne and Florida Friebus, the play is based adapted from the class children’s fantasy book, “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland” by Lewis Carroll. It follows the story of Alice, a 7-year-old girl who falls through a rabbit hole and finds herself in the most curious of places – Wonderland. On her journey, Alice meets a number of strange, talking creatures.
Starring Melissa Rankin as Alice, the play is directed by Breana Park and Dana Kessler serves as stage manager.
MEDIA CONTACT: Breana Park Email: breana.park@wilson.edu
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE | March 20, 2017
Chambersburg, Pa. — Orchesis, the Wilson College modern dance ensemble, will present its annual spring concert on Friday and Saturday, April 7 and 8, in Laird Hall. Performances, which are open to the public, will be held at 7 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, with a Saturday matinee at 1 p.m.
The performances will feature dances choreographed by Wilson College faculty and students, including a guest work choreographed by the Philadelphia dance company, allendance.
Tickets will be available at the door and prices are:
Orchesis was founded at Wilson in 1942 under the direction of Roberta Jones to further the liberal arts education and encourage young women to explore ideas through movement. Today, Orchesis is open to both female and male students and is currently advised by Visiting Assistant Professor of Dance Megan Mizanty.
MEDIA CONTACT: Megan Mizanty, Visiting Assistant Professor of Dance Phone: 570-851-7372 Email: megan.mizanty@wilson.edu
Chambersburg, Pa. — Wilson College will host an information session about its master’s degree program in the humanities at 5 p.m. on Tuesday, March 28, in Norland Hall. The session will cover how to apply and provide an overview of the program, including new courses and five concentrations now available; financial aid; career opportunities; graduate assistantships and more.
Registration may be completed at www.wilson.edu/humanities. For more information, visit the website or contact Master of Humanities Program Director Michael Cornelius at michael.cornelius@wilson.edu or 717-262-2712.
MEDIA CONTACT: Michael Cornelius, Chair, Department of English and Communications Phone: 717-262-2712 Email: michael.cornelius@wilson.edu
