Wesley T. Dellinger '75 Unanimously Elected Chair of LVC Board of Trustees

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Wesley T. Dellinger ’75 Unanimously Elected Chair of LVC Board of Trustees

• Seth Mendelsohn

ANNVILLE, PA (05/11/2012)(readMedia)-- Wesley T. "Wes" Dellinger '75 of Palmyra, a member of Lebanon Valley College's Board of Trustees since 1988, was unanimously elected chair of the College's Board of Trustees during the annual spring meeting Saturday, May 5. Dellinger immediately began serving a three-year term replacing Dr. Lynn Garrett Phillips '68 who completed a three-year term as chair. Phillips will remain on the board and continue serving on several committees.

During the meeting, the Board awarded emeritus status to Harry B. Yost '62, Esq., and congratulated Dr. Marc Harris, LVC associate professor of chemistry, and Kelly Zimmerman '12, student trustee, for their faithful service during their respective faculty and student tenures on the board. Finally, the board welcomed three new members-Seth Mendelsohn M'10, Michael Pittari, and Tito Valdes '14.

Dellinger, whose family has been involved with LVC since his great-grandfather, James T. Spangler, graduated in 1890, graduated from the College with degrees in economics and business administration. The director of Lebanon operations for Brownstone Real Estate, Dellinger has worked for more than 35 years in sales and sales management, including the last 19 in real estate.

Prior to joining the LVC board in 1988, Dellinger was a charter member and business manager of the LVC Alumni Chorale (1978–1984); vice president, president-elect, and president of the LVC Alumni Association (1982–1988); and received the Alumni Volunteer of the Year award from the College in 1984.

In his almost 25 years as a member of the College's Board of Trustees, Dellinger has served on numerous committees including advancement, executive, facilities (chair), and various campaign steering committees. He and his wife, Amy Hoopes Dellinger '78, served as vice chairs of the "Toward 2001 Campaign."

The Dellinger name has a more than 100-year relationship with LVC. In 2002, the College named the newly built, 72-student residence Dellinger Hall in honor of the family. In addition to his great-grandfather, wife, and daughter, Courtney Zechman '05, more than a dozen members of the extended Dellinger family have graduated from or are attending LVC including: J. Curvin Strayer 1906 (great uncle), Dr. Woodrow Dellinger '33 (uncle), Curvin N. Dellinger '38 (father), Dr. Ned D. Heindel '59 (cousin), Woodrow "Skip" Dellinger Jr. '63 (cousin), Lorrie B. Dellinger '77 (brother), Todd Dellinger '85, M'95 (brother), and Hannah Cackovic '13 (niece). Wes and Amy also have a son, Ethan, who is an attorney in Baltimore.

Harry B. Yost '62, Esq., of Lancaster, was awarded emeritus honors for his 32 years of service to the board, including the past 23 as its elected secretary. Yost, senior partner at Appel & Yost LLP, met his wife, Carol A. Yost (Smith) '62 while studying biology at LVC. After LVC, Yost graduated from the Dickinson School of Law earning his juris doctorate. He earned his LL.M. from the New York University School of Law the following year and also served six years as a member of the U.S. Army Reserve.

A member of the board since 1980, Yost served on the executive, investment, and trusteeship (vice chair) committees in addition to his two-plus decade role as secretary. He also served on the Presidential Compensation Subcommittee and is extremely active as a community and church volunteer.

In 2003, Yost received an LVC Alumni Citation and in 2005, he and his wife, Carol, became Lifetime Vickroy Associates in recognition of their generosity to the College and its students.

Geret P. DePiper '68 of Charleston, S.C. was elected secretary of the board replacing Yost. DePiper is a member of the board's Advancement Committee and Finance and Investment Committee. A member of the board since 2007, he is the retired senior vice president/chief operating officer for CSX World Terminals.

Dr. Marc Harris of Palmyra, associate professor of chemistry, and Kelly Zimmerman '12 of Pine Grove completed their terms as faculty and student representatives, respectively. Harris served on the Facilities Committee during his three-year term and Zimmerman served on the Academic/ Student Affairs and Enrollment Committee during her two-year term.

Harris has taught at the College since 2000 and has published several research articles with his students, including in the Journal of Undergraduate Chemistry Research. He earned a B.A. from the University of Arizona and his Ph.D. from the University of Nevada at Reno.

Zimmerman is an English major who is involved in many College activities. While at LVC, she has served as a resident assistant, member of Student Government, and in several other leadership roles. Zimmerman is a Student Government representative for the Class of 2012 and earlier this month was one of five students to receive the Diversity and Social Justice Certificate at the College's annual Student Affairs Leadership and Service Award ceremony.

Finally, three new members joined the board during the annual meeting. Michael Pittari of Lebanon, chair and associate professor of art at LVC, begins a three-year term as faculty representative. Roberto "Tito" Valdes '14 of Lebanon, a political science and pre-law major, starts a two-year term as one of two student representatives. Seth Mendelsohn M'10 of Harrisburg, corporate counsel for the Pennsylvania American Water Company, begins his first term as a member of the Board of Trustees.

Michael Pittari, who has taught at LVC since 2002 and helped launch the College's Department of Art & Art History, earned degrees from the University of Florida and the University of Tennessee. He is an artist who specializes in painting and digital imaging and his work has been exhibited throughout the Eastern United States and is in several corporate collections.

Pittari is a former editor-in-chief of the journal "Art Papers" and has published exhibition reviews and interviews. He teaches studio courses in drawing, painting, and advanced art making, and also teaches historical courses on color and culture and the interrelationship of painting and cinema. His wife, Karen Rich Beall, is also an artist and an adjunct instructor of ceramics and sculpture at LVC.

Tito Valdes '14 is completing his sophomore year at the College where is he co-president of the Lebanon Valley Education Partnership, president of the Class of 2014, and chairman of Student Government's Handicap Accessibility and Facilities committees. He is a member of Hunger Awareness Leaders of Tomorrow and an LVC resident assistant. Valdes is a political science major who plans to attend law school.

Seth Mendelsohn M'10, corporate counsel since 2004 of Pennsylvania-American Water Company (PAWC) in Hershey, is also an adjunct professor of business law in the College's MBA program. Before joining PAWC, he was senior deputy attorney general/attorney-in-charge at the Bureau of Consumer Protection and a judicial law clerk for the Honorable Donald E. Wieand of the Superior Court of Pennsylvania.

Mendelsohn is co-editor of "Pennsylvania Civil Practice" (Lexis Law Publishing, fifth edition, 2012), a treatise that covers all areas of civil procedure in the Commonwealth. In addition to his LVC MBA, he holds a B.A. from the University of Pittsburgh and a J.D. from the Dickinson School of Law.

Mendelsohn is secretary on the board of directors for the American Red Cross of the Susquehanna Valley, a member of the board of directors of the Pennsylvania Bar Institute, and a trustee of Harrisburg Academy. He has been an active member of the boards of the Pennsylvania and American Bar Associations. He and his wife, Amy "A.J." Mendelsohn, also an attorney, have two children.

Lebanon Valley College™ in Annville, Pa., enrolls 1,630 full-time undergraduates studying more than 30 majors, as well as self-designed majors. Founded in 1866, LVC offers graduate programs in physical therapy, business, and music and science education. Annville is 15 minutes east of Hershey and 35 minutes east of Harrisburg; Philadelphia, Washington, D.C., and Baltimore are all within two hours.