Lebanon Valley College Graduates 426 Students at 143rd Commencement

College names top student and faculty award winners

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President MacDonald presented diplomas to more than 400 students at his last Commencement as LVC president; he will soon retire.

ANNVILLE, PA (05/12/2012)(readMedia)-- Lebanon Valley College awarded diplomas May 12 to 426 graduates, who received their degrees on the Academic Quad. The 320 graduating seniors were joined by 31 doctor of physical therapy candidates, 43 master's degree candidates, and 32 students who graduated in December 2011 and have now formally received their degrees.

The Commencement speaker was Dr. Catherine Romagnolo of Lancaster, associate professor of English at LVC. In her address, Romagnolo wondered what the first graduating class at LVC, the class of 1870, would have been thinking as they prepared to move on from college: "The class of 1870 was certainly not facing a world as complicated as the world you are facing today. But, perhaps they were thinking as you may be thinking now: 'But, what can I do?' 'How do I affect this big, complicated world in which I live?' 'How do I make a mark when it seems impossible to do so?' 'How can I create a world in which people truly treat one another as neighbors?' And I believe if I were speaking to them, I would offer the same advice I offer to you: Never underestimate the power of words, use your words to make change, circulate a discourse of kindness and acceptance, and your world will be an accepting and kind place to live. 'Put an alternative discourse into circulation.'" She spoke at Commencement because last year she was honored at the ceremony with the College's top teaching honor, The Thomas Rhys Vickroy Award for a full-time faculty member.

Dr. Philip Benesch of Malvern, associate professor of political science, was named this year's Vickroy Award winner. Benesch was described by a nominator as having a "contagious enthusiasm for teaching and working with students in traditional classroom settings, high impact academic experiences, and through his mentoring and advising." Dr. Michael Green, vice president for academic affairs and dean of the faculty, noted that Benesch "cares deeply about both the intellectual and personal development of students and incorporates experiential learning as a powerful transformational teaching teaching tool."

The top student award, the H. Anthony Neidig Award, went to Caitlin Murphy, an English, international studies, and sociology triple major from Minersville. She was described as having an "extraordinary ability to communicate effectively with others – she is perceptive of people, of group processes and has the qualities of a leader that can quietly and gently influence the atmosphere of a group and move it toward a positive resolution. Her intellectual curiosity, enthusiasm, empathy, and generosity – will lead to her excellence..."

Besides her triple major, Murphy was a member of the Women's Varsity Basketball Team and co-captain for two years; a resident assistant, a peer mentor, and campus organization leader. She has studied abroad twice in the Netherlands: first in the summer of 2010 in a program at Maastricht University, and again at Maastricht as a student leader and coordinator at the Center for European Studies. She was one of the first students to receive a competitive Arnold Experiential Internship Grant to support this internship in the Netherlands. Murphy has conducted collaborative research examining the transformative impact of critical reflection and multimedia narratives on intercultural competence, which will be presented at the Annual International Association of Educators' Conference later this month. She will enroll in a graduate program in international communications at American University in the fall.

Andrew Milosz of Harrisburg, an adjunct instructor of physical therapy who joined LVC in 2008, won the Nevelyn J. Knisley Award, which goes to part-time and adjunct members of the College faculty. Milosz has effectively utilized his clinical experience in a range of courses across the curriculum and has been well received by both faculty and students. Most notably he assumed primary instructor for the fundamentals of anatomy course. One student said of his teaching: "He is an excellent professor. His combined knowledge of anatomy and physical therapy has made him a wonderful fit for teaching this course. I admire his ability to fully devote himself to his students and their education while still working as a full time physical therapist." Another student wrote that "He is an absolutely wonderful professor, his enthusiasm and dedication to teaching made me want to work harder than I have in any other class."

Dr. Mark Mecham of Annville, chair and Clark and Edna Carmean Distinguished Professor of Music, was honored with the Educator of the Year Award, which is voted on by the students. Student government president Ryan Humphries presented the award, saying that Mecham is a teacher of "people and life." Graduating senior Michael Nelson said that Mecham's "emotions compelled us to create a great performance, beyond anything we had accomplished before. LVC is truly blessed to have such a passionate, humorous, and helpful teacher." Graduate Alyson Reitmeyer said, "I'm very excited to take the knowledge he's provided to me-about both music and life-and use it in my own classroom. I hope that I can have as much of a positive impact on my future students as he has had on me."

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Additional high resolution photos of the event will be available for download and use at http://www.flickr.com/photos/lvc1866.