Class Notes
1950's 1960's 1970's 1980's 1990's 2000's 2010's
’50s
Identical twin sisters and YSU alumni Charlotte Italiano of Canfield, ’54 BSEd, and Rose Italiano Pacalo of North Lima, ’55 BS in Medical Technology, enjoy dressing alike to compete at the annual Twins Day Festival in Twinsburg, Ohio. Held every August, the event is billed as the world’s largest gathering of twins. Charlotte is an Ursuline sister and director of Classroom Management at St. Joseph the Provider School in Youngstown; Rose is a retired teacher.
’60s
Don Bartelmay of Aiken, S.C., ’64 BA in History and Political Science, is now serving as national president of Sertoma (Service to Mankind), an international service club with 13,000 members. The club sponsors Camp Sertomas across the country for children with hearing disorders, provides hearing aids to economically disadvantaged people and awards many scholarships to college students studying Audiology and Speech Pathology. Bartelmay also sits on the board of directors of Hearing Charities of America. He is retired after an award-winning 35-year career with JC Penney, where he worked in store, district and market management.
’70s
Donna M. DeBlasio, ’71 BA and ’76 MA in History, has joined the editorial team of Ohio History. A professor of History at YSU, she worked with journal editor and YSU colleague L. Diane Barnes, also a History professor, as coeditor of the Fall 2016 edition of the Ohio History journal, a publication of Kent State University Press. DeBlasio assumed full editorship this year. She holds a PhD in History from Kent State.
Elizabeth Nocera Davis of Medina, ’75 BS, a partner in the Roetzel law firm and based in its Akron headquarters, has been named to the “Best Lawyers in America” 2017 in the field of Medical Malpractice Defense. The “Best Lawyers” recognition is based on a peer-review evaluation. Davis earned her law degree from the University of Akron School of Law.
Joseph Martuccio of Canton, Ohio, ’76 BA, was recently named to a one-year term as the 99th president of the Stark County Bar Association. He has served as law director for the City of Canton since 2000 and previously was employed as the Stark County Public Defender, then as assistant city law director. He has served in several leadership positions in the bar association.
Dan Linebaugh of Baytown, Texas, ’78 BA in Speech Communication, has received the Diplomates of Trial Advocacy from the American Association for Justice, an award recognizing attorneys who have developed their professional and practical knowledge of trial skills and substantive law. He is one of only seven attorneys in Texas to be named an AAJ Diplomate. The founder of the Linebaugh Law Firm in Baytown, he earned his law degree from South Texas College of Law and is a graduate of the prestigious Trial Lawyers College in Dubois, Wyo. He serves on the board of governors for the American Association of Justice Bus Litigation Group.
’80s
Steven Bondor of Clayton, N.C., ’80 BE in Civil Engineering, has joined the Raleigh, N.C., office of Dewberry, a privately held professional service firm, where he will support the water resources division for transportation and design-build projects. Bondor has nearly 20 years experience in hydraulic highway design.
Michael J. Hudak of Canfield, ’80 BSAS, and Terrence S. Finn of Akron, ’84 BE, both partners and attorneys with Roetxel & Andress LPA in Akron, were named to the 2017 edition of the “Best Lawyers in America” list. Hudak was recognized in the field of Medical Malpractice Defense; Finn, in the field of Environmental Law and Litigation. “Best Lawyers” honorees are chosen on the basis of peer-review evaluations. Hudak earned his law degree from the University of Akron School of Law; Finn earned his law degree from the University of Toledo College of Law.
John S. Arditi of Spring, Texas, ’82 BSBA in Accounting, has joined Empire Continental Land, a leading Canadian land developer and homebuilder launching a homebuilding division in the Texas market. Arditi has more than 25 years experience in the homebuilding industry, most recently with Meritage Homes Corporation in Houston.
Chuck Caputo of Novi, Mich., ’82 BSBA in Marketing, has been promoted to vice president of real estate for Detroit Medical Centers by the Farbman Group, a real estate firm based in Southfield, Mich. Caputo joined the firm in 2009. In his new position, he will oversee the medical center’s long range strategic planning.
Mary Pat Salomone of Charlotte, N.C., ’82 BE in Civil Engineering, was named to the board of directors for Herc Holdings Inc., the equipment rental company formerly named Hertz Global Holdings Inc. and the continuing parent of Herc Rentals. Formerly the senior vice president and chief operating officer of The Babcock and Wilcox Company, she also serves on boards for the YSU Foundation, TransCanada Corp. and Intertape Polymer Group.
Patricia Veisz of Youngstown, ’83 MBA, was presented a “State Star” award at the 36th Annual America’s SBDC conference in Orlando, Fla. Veisz is director of the Ohio Small Business Development Center at YSU. Under her leadership, the program has expanded to offer international trade consulting services, has earned several regional awards for excellence and innovation and has had a significant impact on economic development in the region.
Louis V. Colella of Hudson, Ohio, ’85 BSBA in Accounting, has been promoted to managing principal by JFS Wealth Advisors, an independent wealth management firm. A CPA and a Certified Financial Planner, he will continue to lead the firm’s Hermitage, Pa., and Northeast Ohio teams. Previously, before joining JFS, he was director of Finance and Operations for Walnut Ridge Strategic Management in Akron.
Anthony J. Buzzacco of Manteo, N.C., ’85 AAS, ’92 BSN, is nursing director of Emergency Services at the Outer Banks Hospital in Nags Head, N.C. He began his nursing career at Northside Medical Center in Youngstown and also worked at Beeghly Emergency Department and Akron Children's Hospital’s Beeghly Campus. He holds an MSN from Walden University.
Arthur Byrd of Boardman, ’85 BS in Telecommunications, ’92 AAS in Business Management, received the Distinguished Toastmaster award in 2016, the highest honor available in the international Toastmaster program. A Toastmaster since 2009, Byrd is president of the Youngstown Chapter of Toastmasters Executive 408. He and another member, Mike Gerrick of Howland, were the first in the local club’s 50-year history to achieve the honor.
Andrea Wasko of San Luis Obispo, Calif., ’86 BS in Psychology, presented at a seminar titled “Financial Wellbeing for Women: Learn to Build Wealth at Any Age,” in Los Osos, Calif., and is president of Economics of Being a Woman, a nonprofit that has empowered more than 22,000 women through financial education. A business strategist and executive coach, she holds an MBA from Golden Gate University and has been the recipient of many other awards for her efforts to improve the lives of women and girls in California.
LaNard Stradford of Avon, Ind., ’87 BFA in Graphic Design, was recently named plant manager for Mspark Indianapolis, a mail inserting facility. Previously he held leadership roles at Cargill Dry Corn Ingredients, Pepsico-Gatorade, The Indianapolis Star and The Cleveland Plain Dealer. Stradford holds a master's degree in applied management from Indiana Wesleyan University.
Edward Leonard of Columbus, Ohio, ’87 BSBA in Management, was named director of the Franklin County Board of Elections. As a student, he completed YSU’s ROTC program, then earned a law degree from Cleveland-Marshall College of Law and began his legal career as Captain in the Army's Judge Advocate General's Corp. Leonard was in private practice for years and served in several administrative positions in county government until 2008, when he was elected to the first of his two four-year terms as Franklin County Treasurer.
Kathy Mock of Austintown, ’88 MSEd, was honored by the Ohio School Board Association as an Outstanding School Board Member for the Northeast Ohio region. Now serving as president of the Austintown Board of Education, Mock has been a member of the board for six years, five as president. She also serves as director of Education and Initiatives for the United Way of Youngstown and the Mahoning Valley, supervises its Success By 6 and Success After Six programs and the Dolly Parton Imagination Library, and is an instructor in YSU’s Beeghly College of Education.
Dori Gatta MacMillan of Niles, Ohio, ’89 BA in Psychology, is a psychologist for the Niles City Schools, where she provides services for children of all ages, from preschool through high school. Last summer she worked with YSU associate professor Richard Van Voorhis to teach a pre-internship cohort of School Psychology students. She is pursuing a doctorate in Educational Leadership from Concordia University in Chicago and expects to complete it by 2018. She is also a licensed social worker and holds an MS in Education and an Educational Specialist in School Psychology credential, both from Kent State.
’90s
Rich Retort of Edinburg, Pa., ’93 BA in Economics, ’96 BE in Mechanical Engineering, has been promoted to chief executive officer of SES LLC, an automation services and material handling equipment maker, succeeding its retiring CEO. Formerly chief operating officer, Retort has served in a succession of engineering, sales and leadership positions in his 20 years with the company.
Maraline Kubik of Canfield, ’94 AB in Professional Writing and Editing, was named director of Sister Jerome’s Mission, a ministry of the Ursuline Sisters of Youngstown, succeeding the ministry’s founder, Sister Jerome Corcoran. The ministry’s work includes helping working poor urban families with emergency expenses and helping young adults from those families to break the cycle of poverty by pursuing a college degree. Previously, Kubik was employed in the marketing department at Mercy Health Youngstown, and before that she was a writer and reporter for The Business Journal and The Vindicator, both in Youngstown.
Dr. Babur Lateef of Manassas, Va., ’94 BS in Combined Science, has been appointed to the University of Virginia Board of Trustees by Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe. Lateef is a board-certified physician and surgeon, and the president of Advanced Ophthalmology Inc. He earned his medical degree from Northeast Ohio Medical University, and then completed an internal medicine internship at the Western Reserve Healthcare System and an ophthalmology residency at the University of Rochester Strong Memorial Hospital.
Michael Beverly of Youngstown, ’95 BA and ’02 MA, both in History, was one of four featured speakers in October for the Youngstown Chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People 98th annual fundraiser banquet. He is a senior coordinator for YSU’s Marion G. Resch Center for Student Progress and joined the university in 2003. Previously, he was an attendance and student support coordinator at Eagle Heights Academy in Youngstown.
James Ford of Youngstown, ’96 AAS in Criminal Justice, has been employed for 20 years as a paralegal for Community Legal Services in Youngstown. He is also co-owner of Cinemanix, a film production company based in the city, where he has worked on a variety of major films and local film projects.
Brett Miller of Silver Spring, Md., ’99 BM, performed for a hometown audience this fall as the principal French hornist in the U.S. Air Force Concert Band and Singing Sergeants concert tour. The band performed in Youngstown as part of a 10-day tour. A Master Sgt., he joined the Air Force Band in 2002. Miller, who holds a master’s degree from Indiana University and a doctorate from the University of Maryland, is a prolific composer. He has published more than 30 works for various brass solo instruments and chamber ensembles.
’00s
Scot Pflug of Austintown, ’00 BS in Criminal Justice, has been named chief information security officer for F.N.B. Corp. and will provide primary oversight for the company’s information security and risk management strategy. Pflug has more than 20 years of diverse information technology experience, most recently as chief information security officer for FirstMerit Bank.
Todd Bryarly of New Middletown, ’02 BSBA in Accounting, has been promoted to partner at HBK CPAs and Consultants. He joined the company in 2012 and serves as president of the Mahoning Shenango Valley Estate Planning Council.
David Tesniarz of Naples, Fla., ’02 BSBA in Accounting, is controller for the NCH Physician Group, part of the NCH Healthcare System in Naples. He holds a master’s degree in Accounting and Taxation from Florida Gulf Coast University. Previously, he was a senior associate for Hill, Barth and King CPAs in Naples. He is a member of Pete’s Pride, YSU’s Football Alumni Club and the Penguin Scholarship Club.
Bruce Warrender of Greenville, N.C., ’03 BS in Respiratory Care, was recently promoted to program director of Polysomnography at Pitt Community College in Greenville, where he previously served as clinical coordinator of the sleep program. He worked as a respiratory therapist in Ohio and Western Pennsylvania after completing his degree and then got involved in sleep studies as a sleep technologist while working at Northside Medical Center. Warrender was an instructor in YSU's Polysomnography Certificate program before he relocated.
Nick Odille of Warren, ’04 BSBA in Accounting, has been promoted to partner at HBK CPAs and Consultants. Odille belongs to the Builders Association of Eastern Ohio and Western Pennsylvania and the American Institute and Ohio Society of Certified Public Accountants. He is a member of YSU’s Penguin Club and a member and past president of Warren Rotary.
Aaron D. Scott of Burke, Va., ‘04 BS in Clarinet Performance, an Army Staff Sgt., is a clarinetist and member of the Army Woodwind Quintet, which is part of the renowned Army Band “Pershing’s Own.” After earning his YSU degree, he earned master's and doctoral degrees from the University of Cincinnati, and he has performed around the country at concerts, ceremonies and master classes in venues such as the Kennedy Center and Lincoln Center.
Chelsea Kusky of Poland, Ohio, ’05 BFA in Fine Art Photography, owner, creative director and designer of the Poland design firm Doodlebug & Peep, was recognized by Continental Who’s Who as a Pinnacle Professional in the field of Graphic Design. Doodlebug & Peep is a designer of custom special event invitations and coordinating event décor items.
Dominic Lippillo of Starkville, Miss., ’05 BFA in Photography, has been awarded a $4,500 visual arts grant from the Mississippi Arts Commission. An assistant professor of Photography in Mississippi State University’s Department of Art, Lippillo’s new solo project is titled “Stories We Tell Ourselves” and features photographs of non-specific American landscapes and depictions of mundane daily happenings. An MSU faculty member since 2010, he also holds an MFA from Ohio University. His work is featured in the permanent collections of the Museum of Photographic Art in San Diego, Calif., the Museum of Fine Art in Houston, Texas, and the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa.
Dr. Michael P. Miladore of Canfield, ’06 BS in Combined Science, has joined the Youngstown Orthopaedic Associates surgical practice in Canfield. Miladore completed medical school at Northeast Ohio Medical University and spent a year in a hand and upper extremity fellowship at the State University of New York in Buffalo, N.Y., where he also completed his residency in orthopaedic surgery.
Rebecca Tuttle Bayley of Youngstown, ’09 MBA, has joined Cardinal Mooney High School as director of Admissions and Marketing. Previously, she was employed by the Archdiocese of New York Department of Education where she was Regional Marketing Specialist in the Northwest/South Bronx Catholic Schools and Director of Enrollment. She earned undergraduate degrees in International Studies and Italian from Ohio State University and an MA in Modern European Studies from
Columbia University.
Roxanne Hauldren of New York, N.Y., ’09 BFA in Musical Theater, was awarded a Certificate of Excellence by TripAdvisor for the shopping tour business she founded, called Shop with Rox. TripAdvisor uses the certificate program to recognize businesses that consistently receive outstanding traveler reviews. Hauldren was among the alumni entrepreneurs featured in the Fall 2015 edition of YSU Magazine.
Hannah Wine of Youngstown, ’09 BSEd in Early Childhood Education, ’11 MSEd in Literacy, was chosen from a field of 14 nominees to be the Youngstown City School District Teacher of the Year. A first grade teacher at William Holmes McGuffey Elementary School, Wine joined the district six years ago and has also served as a kindergarten teacher
and a literacy coach.
’10s
Kellie Brautigam of Denver, Colo., ’10 BSEd, participated in a global field course in India last summer as part of her studies toward a master’s degree from Miami University of Ohio. During the trip, she studied the ecological, cultural and spiritual landscapes of the Western Ghats. Last year, she traveled to the Central American country of Belize under the same program. Formerly an English teacher at Canfield High School, she is now teaching at Highlands Ranch High School in Denver.
Jim Shaw of Austintown, Ohio, ’10 BA in Political Science, is employed as the fiscal officer for the Mahoning County Board of Elections and is also active in Ohio politics. In 2016 he received the John Ashbrook Award for Conservatism from the Ohio Young Republican Organization and in 2013 he was presented the John Kasich Republican Man of the Year Award. Shaw, who also holds an MA in Political Science from the University of Akron, is a freelance writer for several online political news outlets. Before joining Mahoning County he worked for Nationwide Insurance.
Christina Humble of Bowling Green, Ohio, ’11 BFA in Painting and Printmaking and BSEd, performed demonstrations at the Mid American Print Conference last fall, an event hosted by the University of Louisville and Indiana University SouthEast. An interdisciplinary artist who has worked and shown her work nationally and internationally, Humble earned an MFA in Studio Art from American University in Washington, D.C. She teaches part-time for the Bowling Green City Schools, had her work displayed in Lithuania in an international exhibit in 2015 and remains active in her local art community.
Ashley McCabe of Dublin, Ohio, ’11 MSEd in Counseling, is director of Student Success and an adjunct professor at Capital University in Columbus. Married last December to fellow YSU alumnus Bobby McCabe,'15, BA History, she is pursuing her juris doctor degree at Capital University Law School.
Ross Mazzupappa of Bowling Green, Ohio, ’12 BFA in Studio Art Printmaking and Painting, is instructor of Printmaking and Photography at Bowling Green State University and an artist specializing in Printmaking and Photographic techniques and processes. Mazzupappa performed demonstrations at the Mid American Print Conference last fall, an event hosted by the University of Louisville and Indiana University SouthEast. He holds MA and MFA degrees in Printmaking, both from the University of Iowa. His work has been shown nationally and internationally in various juried exhibitions and portfolio exchanges.
Chelsey A. Zoldan of Canfield, ’12 BA in Psychology, ’14 MSEd in Counseling, is employed as a medication assisted treatment counselor at Meridian HealthCare in Youngstown while pursuing a doctoral degree in Counselor Education and Supervision at the University of Akron. She was named a 25 Under 35 Award recipient for 2017 by the Mahoning Valley Young Professionals and also co-authored a book chapter in a recently-published book titled A Guide to Graduate Programs
in Counseling.
Julianna Marsco of Niles, ’14 BA in Communication Studies, was hired as marketing coordinator in the Marketing Office of Cortland Bank, based in the Cortland office. Previously, she was resource development and marketing manager for the
United Way of Trumbull County.
Cameron Carter of Grandview Heights, Ohio, ‘15 BS in Early Childhood Education, is a second grade teacher at Slate Hill Elementary in his second year of teaching in the Worthington City Schools. He was awarded the 2016 Affiliate Leadership Development Award by the Ohio Council of Teachers of English and recognized in November at the National Council of Teachers of English Convention in Atlanta. The award is given annually to one teacher in each state, all in their first through fifth years of teaching. Carter was recognized for having presented on literacy topics, written in a scholarly English journal and helping to host the affiliate state conference.