814-863-0694

Evening of Discovery

A look back at the April 20th celebration of student and faculty successes that have inspired A Greater Penn State’s ambitious goals.

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Program Speakers and Strolling Supper Presenters

Below, you will find a list of the students and faculty who participated in the Evening of Discovery, along with more information on the projects and programs they represented. Should you be interested in learning more about how to support a particular initiative, please reference the corresponding development staff contact.

 

Photo Gallery

Revisit highlights from the Evening of Discovery!

Photo Gallery

Live Program

Ana De La Fuente Duran

Ana De La Fuente Duran

  • Materials Science and Engineering
  • Millennium Scholars Program

How the Millennium Scholars Program has helped Ana and other students to see a future for themselves in STEM research

Learn more about the Millennium Scholars Program.

Materials Science and Engineering Contact:
Sue Powell
Director of Development and Alumni Relations
College of Earth and Mineral Sciences
814-863-4691
sjp1@psu.edu

Millennium Scholars Program Contact:
Joyce Matthews
Senior Director of Development
Eberly College of Science
814-863-8454
jvm2@psu.edu

David Candito

David Candito

  • Accounting and Finance
  • Schreyer Honors College

Scholarships make it possible for students like David to get more out of their Penn State experience than they ever expected

Learn more about Open Doors scholarships.

Contact:
Michelle Houser
Senior Director of Development and Alumni Relations
Smeal College of Business
814-865-7830
mkb117@psu.edu

Sean Miller
Director of Development and Alumni Relations
Schreyer Honors College
814-863-4543
smm401@psu.edu

Jonathan Adrien

Jonathan Adrien

  • Penn State Brandywine

Through programs like Pathway to Success: Summer Start, students like Jonathan can hit the ground running in their Penn State careers

Learn more about supporting students in the PaSSS Program.

Contact:
Rachel McCarter
Director of Development
Penn State Brandywine
610-892-1253
rbm27@psu.edu

Rachel Shriver

Rachel Shriver

  • Secondary English Education

Opportunities like the Teaching English as a Second Language (TESL) program in Ecuador help students like Rachel to see their global future

Contact:
Simon Corby
Director of Development and Alumni Relations
College of Education
814-863-2146
sgc12@psu.edu

Carolynne Hultquist, Ph.D. Candidate

Carolynne Hultquist, Ph.D. Candidate

  • Geography

Digital innovations like Carolynne’s work on natural disasters has the potential to change all our lives

Contact:
Sue Powell
Director of Development and Alumni Relations
College of Earth and Mineral Sciences
814-863-4691
sjp1@psu.edu

Brian Anthony Davis

Brian Anthony Davis

  • African American Studies

Through the arts and humanities, students like Brian can find pathways to understanding, involvement, and success

Contact:
Geoff Halberstadt
Interim Director of Development
College of the Liberal Arts
814-865-1408
glh5028@psu.edu

Tom Richard

Tom Richard

  • Director, Penn State Institutes for Energy and the Environment
  • Professor of Agricultural and Biological Engineering

The Global Building Initiative is just one of the ways in which Penn State can be a leader in resource security and become the Energy University

Learn more about the Penn State Institutes for Energy and the Environment.

Contact:
Eric Reinhard
Director of Campaign Imperatives
814-867-0769
ereinhard@psu.edu

Kathryn H. Schmitz

Kathryn H. Schmitz

  • Professor, Penn State College of Medicine
  • President-Elect, American College of Sports Medicine

Research like Dr. Schmitz’s work on cancer outcomes can help Penn State to lead the way in human health

Learn more about the Penn State Cancer Institute.

Contact:
Kelly Altland
Associate Vice President and Chief Development Officer
Penn State Hershey
717-531-8456
kaa18@psu.edu

Mary Elizabeth McCulloch

Mary Elizabeth McCulloch

  • Bioengineering and Biomedical Engineering Founder and CEO, Project Vive

Through the Happy Valley LaunchBox, powered by PNC, aspiring entrepreneurs like Mary Elizabeth can turn their ambitious ideas into reality

Learn more about these programs.

Contact:
Eric Reinhard
Director of Campaign Imperatives
814-867-0769
ereinhard@psu.edu

Strolling Supper: Interactive station #1

Open Doors: Serving Those Who Served

Open Doors: Serving Those Who Served

  • Colonel Eugene McFeely
    • Senior Director of Veterans Affairs and Services
  • Robert C. Farmer III
    • USMC Veteran

How Penn State supports military veterans and active duty servicemembers

Contact:
Kimberly Neely
Director of Development
Office of University Development
814-863-7353

Create Transformative Experiences: Exploring Perceptions

Create Transformative Experiences: Exploring Perceptions

  • Andrew Belser
    • Penn State Laureate
    • Professor, School of Theatre
    • Executive Director, FaceAge
  • Amy Lorek
    • FaceAge Director of Engagement, Curriculum, and Assessment
  • Scott Tucker
    • FaceAge Project Design Lead

FaceAge, an interdisciplinary video project bridging the generations

Contact:
Don Lenze
Director of Development
College of Arts & Architecture
814-863-2142
donlenze@psu.edu

Impact the World: Growing a Sustainable Bioeconomy/Investigation of Gas in Shale

Impact the World: Growing a Sustainable Bioeconomy/Investigation of Gas in Shale

  • Stephanie Herbstritt
    • Ph.D. Candidate, Agricultural and Biological Engineering
  • Zuleima Karpyn
    • Professor, Chair of Petroleum and Natural Gas Engineering
  • Nirjhor Chakraborty
    • Ph.D. Candidate, Petroleum and Natural Gas Engineering

Exploring two of many ways in which Penn State is becoming the Energy University

Contact:
Lauren Steinberg
Director of Development
College of Agricultural Sciences
814-863-1373
lxs229@psu.edu

Sue Powell
Director of Development and Alumni Relations
College of Earth and Mineral Sciences
814-863-4691
sjp1@psu.edu

Strolling Supper: Interactive station #2

Open Doors: Ensuring a True Penn State Experience

Open Doors: Ensuring a True Penn State Experience

  • Melissa Kunes
    • Executive Director for Student Aid
  • Anita Leone
    • Associate Director, University Scholarships and Special Programs
  • Kelly Morgan
    • Lion Ambassador and Scholarship Recipient

How the University is continuing its tradition of educational access and opportunity

Contact:
Dave Lieb
Senior Associate Vice President for Development, Fundraising Units
814-863-0694
djl120@psu.edu

Create Transformative Experiences: Exploring Global Health

Create Transformative Experiences: Exploring Global Health

  • Dana Naughton
    • Director, Global Health Minor Program
  • Christopher Frazzette
    • Global Health Minor
    • Immunology and Infectious Disease Major
  • Hanne Genyn
    • Global Health Minor
    • Biobehavioral Health Major
  • Madison Altmeyer
    • Global Health Minor
    • Philosophy Major

The international learning offered by Penn State’s Global Health Minor

Contact:
Kathleen Rider
Director of Development
College of Health and Human Development
814-865-1064
kmr8@psu.edu

Impact the World: Innovation and Entrepreneurship

Impact the World: Innovation and Entrepreneurship

  • Jacob Marsh
    • Industry Relations Coordinator, Penn State Behrend Innovation Commons
  • Michael Paul
    • Electrical Engineering Major
    • Staff Member, Penn State Behrend Innovation Commons

Groundbreaking products from Penn State Behrend’s Innovation Commons

Contact:
Kevin Moore
Director of Development and Alumni Relations
Penn State Erie, The Behrend College
814-898-6159
kem7@psu.edu

Eric Reinhard
Director of Campaign Imperatives
814-867-0769
ereinhard@psu.edu

Strolling Supper: Interactive station #3

Open Doors: Learning Skills, Establishing Connections

Open Doors: Learning Skills, Establishing Connections

  • Kelly Griffith
    • Director, Office for Summer Session
  • Dr. Ashley Adams
    • Director of Student Affairs, World Campus
  • Dan’Yell Hastick
    • PaSSS Mentoring Coordinator, Penn State Altoona
  • Madison Lazeration
    • PaSSS Program Participant, Penn State Altoona

The Open Doors programs, helping students to graduate on time and on track to success

Contact:
Dave Lieb
Senior Associate Vice President for Development, Fundraising Units
814-863-0694
djl120@psu.edu

Mark Theiss
Executive Director, University Development
Interim Director, Development & Alumni Relations
Penn State Altoona
814-865-1137
mjt118@psu.edu

Create Transformative Experiences: Cybersecurity: Moving Target Defenses

Create Transformative Experiences: Cybersecurity: Moving Target Defenses

  • Alejandro Cuevas
    • Security and Risk Analysis Major; Schreyer Scholar
  • Jun Xu, Ph.D.
    • Candidate, Information Sciences and Technology
  • Dr. Peng Liu
    • Director, Center for Cybersecurity, Information, Privacy, and Trust

An innovative approach to fighting off attacks on digital data

Contact:
Office of Development and Alumni Relations
College of Information Sciences and Technology
814-865-6459
alumni@ist.psu.edu

Impact the World: New Life Starts with New Neurons

Impact the World: New Life Starts with New Neurons

  • Dr. Gong Chen
    • Verne M. Willaman Chair in Life Sciences
  • Dr. Zheng Wu
    • Assistant Research Professor, Biology
  • Matthew Keefe
    • Undergraduate Student Researcher
  • Brendan Puls
    • Ph.D. Candidate, Neuroscience

Brain repair therapies with the potential to reverse the effects of Alzheimer’s disease, strokes, and more

Contact:
Joyce Matthews
Senior Director of Development
Eberly College of Science
814-863-8454
jvm2@psu.edu