Class Notes
1950s 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s 2020s
’50s
U.S. Army Cpl. William Blascak, 1958, Biology, was among 13 veterans honored at Austintown’s 16th annual Patriots Day celebration. A Girard native, Blascak was drafted into the Army in 1952 and was trained to be an Airborne Military Policeman, serving with the 503th Regimental Combat Team. He returned to the Mahoning Valley and used the GI Bill to earn a degree from YSU, where he later taught Biology for 25 years.
’70s
Joe Meranto, 1972, Education, and 1975, master of Education, was appointed a member of the Youngstown Board of Education. Meranto’s career in education spans 50 years, including superintendent of the Youngstown City Schools from 2017 to 2022. He previously was the executive director of Choffin Career and Technical Center for 14 years, and he also worked as a high school and K-8 principal and teacher.
Terry A. Moore, 1977, Political Science, has been named chair of the board of directors at Farmers National Banc Corp. Moore joined the board in April 2014 and also serves on the compensation, and corporate governance and nominating committees. At YSU, he was an All-American athlete and co-captain of the basketball team and later earned a law degree from the University of Cincinnati. From 2001 to 2018, he was managing director of the Canton-based law firm of Krugliak, Wilkins, Griffiths & Dougherty Co., L.P.A.
Richard Broda, 1977, Applied Science and Technology, has retired as a lieutenant colonel in the Department of Defense, where he served for nearly four decades. He was a rifleman/paratrooper, logistician and acquisition officer following his Army ROTC commissioning. During his YSU years, he participated in Greek intramural sports programs for softball, flag football, swimming and basketball, as well as ROTC riflery. He was a member of the ROTC Honor Society Scabbard and Blade, and the Phi Kappa Tau president. He continued service within DoD following his military retirement as a senior acquisition manager and obtained his civilian license as a Certified Professional Contracts Manager as well as several other DoD contracting certifications. He led organizations that managed contracts for construction, food, supplies, services, medical research and development, and aviation weapon systems with a portfolio valuation over $2.7 billion.
’80s
Chuck George, 1981, Accounting, is the inaugural recipient of the Business Journal’s Brain Gain Excellence in Entrepreneurship Award, recognizing individuals who have leveraged local resources to kick-start fresh ideas into promising businesses. George, a member of the YSU Board of Trustees, is chief executive of Hapco Inc., Strangepresse and Triptech, chief financial officer of Big Metal Additive and co-founder of Greenboard IT. He worked for 17 years at Packer, Thomas & Co. in Youngstown, serving as company president and senior shareholder. WATCH
Brook Walton, 1986, Criminal Justice, recently retired after 32 years with the U.S. Secret Service. He retired with the rank of captain, serving and protecting each president, vice president, their families, and foreign dignitaries, since1987.
Brian E. Edwards, 1987, Chemical Engineering, has been named to the Board of Directors of Cheniere Energy Inc. Edwards is a senior vice president of Caterpillar Inc. with responsibility for the Caterpillar Remanufacturing Division. He joined Caterpillar in 2010 as vice president of Sales and Marketing at Caterpillar’s wholly owned subsidiary, Progress Rail. He previously spent more than 20 years in manufacturing, engineering and supply chain roles at General Electric Co. and General Motors Co. He also holds a master’s degree in Manufacturing Management from Kettering University.
Ned M. Bassil, 1987, Electrical Engineering, 1991, master’s of Electrical Engineering, has been named chief executive officer of Indevco North America, a paper, paperboard and plastic packaging manufacturer. Bassil was previously with Beckway Group, where he served as an operating partner liaising with a wide range of industrial and consumer product goods clients. Before Beckway, Bassil worked in the building material distribution industry as senior vice president of product management at PrimeSource and as chief supply chain officer at BlueLinx. He also holds a master of Business Administration in Finance from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.
Jeff Good, 1987, Speech Communications, was recently named to the Mahoning County Career and Technical Center governing board in Canfield. Good is chief education technology officer at PBS Western Reserve. The center provides career courses and education to middle school, high school and adult learners. He was appointed by the Educational Service Center of Eastern Ohio, on whose governing board he has served since 2017.
Patricia Mishic O’Brien, 1989, Business Administration, has been appointed to the board of 5E Advanced Materials Inc., a boron and lithium company with U.S. government critical infrastructure designation for its 5E Boron Americas Complex. Mishic O’Brien was most recently the chief commercial officer at CoorsTek Inc, a global manufacturer of engineered ceramics for industries including green energy, semiconductors, aerospace, defense, medical devices and electric vehicles. She also previously was chief marketing officer and executive vice president for A. Schulman Inc. and a global director of Marketing Excellence for Dow Inc.
’90s
The Rev. John-Michael Lavelle, 1990, Elementary Education, has been named director of Stewardship and Development in the Catholic Diocese of Youngstown. He also will remain vicar for missionary discipleship and pastor of St. Michael Parish in Canfield. Lavelle was appointed vicar for missionary discipleship in 2021, and serves on the Diocesan Administrative Board, Diocesan Presbyteral Council, the Diocese of Youngstown Foundation and the Catholic Charities Regional Agency Board. Lavelle was ordained in 2000 and has served as pastor at Immaculate Conception Parish, Ravenna, and Our Lady of Mount Carmel Parish, Niles, and as associate pastor at Saint Mary Parish, Massillon, and Saint Christine Parish, Youngstown. He also holds master’s degrees in both Divinity and Religious Education from Saint Vincent Seminary, Latrobe, and a doctorate in Ministry from Saint Mary Seminary, Cleveland.
U.S. Army Sgt. Mickey Nuzzo, 1990, Applied Science and Technology, was among 13 veterans honored at Austintown’s 16th annual Patriots Day celebration. Nuzzo was working at Youngstown Sheet and Tube when he was called up in 1969. He became a combat medic in Vietnam with the 14th Corps Artillery, providing fire support in the north at places like Khe Sahn, Dong Ha and Con Thien. Among other awards, he earned two Bronze Star medals. He went on get a degree from YSU and continued a career in medicine as a physician’s surgical assistant.
Richard Kaglic, 1991, Economics, and 1992, master’s of Economics, was the speaker at the Annual Economic Outlook Luncheon presented by Mutual Federal in partnership with the Sidney-Shelby County Chamber of Commerce and the Sidney-Shelby County YMCA. Kaglic is vice president and senior regional officer of the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland, Cincinnati Branch. He joined the Federal Reserve System in 1994 as a senior business economist at the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, and subsequently was a senior regional economist at the Charlotte Branch of the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. Prior to his service in the Federal Reserve System, Kaglic was a senior economist at Eaton Corporation and the chief economist at the Washington Employment Security Department.
John Spivey, 1993, Sociology, is the new facilities coordinator for the Raymond John Wean Foundation. Spivey maintains the functionality, safety, maintenance and health and vitality of the foundation offices. In addition to being a small business owner for over 20 years, Spivey was employed as specialist/job developer at Coleman Behavior Health.
Atty. Susan E. Petersen, 1993, Telecommunication, has been elected to the Board of Governors of the International Society of Barristers. In addition, Petersen is a board member for the Cleveland Academy of Trial Attorneys, past president of the Ohio Women’s Bar Association and a long-time member of the Million Dollar Advocates Forum. She has been selected an Ohio “Super Lawyer” for the last dozen years and also as a member of the American Board of Trial Advocates. She also served 10 years on the board of the Ohio Association for Justice.
William Toby Gibson, 1998, Elementary Education, 2004, master’s of administration and Superintendent Licensure, was recently inducted into the 2022 Distinguished Alumni Hall of Fame at Brookfield High School. Gibson initially worked in Farrell, Pa., and Warren City schools before going to Brookfield schools in 2000. He spent 10 years as a middle school teacher in math, science, social studies, world studies and American history. In 2011, he was named Brookfield Elementary School principal and, in 2016 became Brookfield Middle School principal. He was named Brookfield’s superintendent in 2019.
A new exhibit in the Mesaros Gallery of the Butler Institute of American Art in Youngstown features works by Maple Turner III, 1999, bachelor of Fine Arts. The exhibit, titled "The Journey," includes 65 pieces dating to1969, during Turner’s time at East High School in Youngstown. After earning his degree from YSU, Turner moved to New York to pursue a career as an artist, selling paintings to numerous galleries and private collectors and earning an associaate's degree in Fine Arts from the Parsons School of Design and a master's of Fine Arts from City College. Watch.
’00s
Mary Beth Messner, 2000, English, is the author of “A Safe Place to Explore: The Value of Honors in Higher Education” in the Journal of the National Collegiate Honors Council. The article appeared in the Journal’s special edition on “The Value of Honors to its Graduates.” Messner was part of the YSU University Scholars and Honors Program from 1996 to 2000 and is currently director of Elearning at Walsh University.
Lumi Bakos, 2001, International Business, and 2002, master’s in Economics, is the new associate vice president for Research Operations at the University of South Carolina. Bakos started her administrative career in USC’s Sponsored Awards Management Office in 2006 as a sponsored program administrator and later senior sponsored program administrator in 2010. Bakos then took a position in the Arnold School of Public Health as senior development grant specialist and subsequently as director of the Arnold School of Public Health Office of Research. With the help of her staff, Bakos oversaw the college’s all-time high of $47.3 million in research awards in fiscal year 2022. In July 2021, Bakos joined the Office of the Vice President for Research as senior advisor, and in July 2022 took her current position. Bakos is married to Jason D. Bakos, 1999, Computer Science.
Michelle Panuccio, 2002, Professional Writing and Editing, is the author of “Valuing Diversity” in the Journal of the National Collegiate Honors Council. The article appeared in the Journal’s special edition on “The Value of Honors to its Graduates.” Panuccio is director of Enterprise Portfolio Management with Centivo.
Mollie Hartup, 2002, Telecommunication Studies and Geography, and 2004, master’s of Business Administration, and current student Julie Centofanti, published an essay titled “Serving through Transcribing: Preserving History while Building Community” in the peer-reviewed honors journal, Honors in Practice. Hartup, former editor of the YSU Magazine, is director of the Sokolov Honors College at YSU. Centofanti is a student in the college.
Melissa Kmetz, 2003, Education – Early Childhood P-3, and 2007, master’s as a Reading Specialist, is Ohio’s 2023 Teacher of the Year. Kmetz is a third grade language arts teacher and grade level chairperson at Lakeview Elementary School in Cortland. “There are so many wonderful things going on in education and the communities don’t always get to see that,” Kmetz told Spectrum News about the honor. “So hopefully I can just kind of shine a light on that.” Kmetz began her career teaching kindergarten and first grade in Salem, Ohio, where she secured a Martha Holden Jennings Grant to Educators to open a literacy lending library. In 2006, she moved to Lakeview schools, where she taught third grade for the past 17 years. She has completed professional development at Harvard Graduate School of Education and, in 2010, developed a “Change the World Project “in her school district. She was nominated for the Ohio Teacher of the Year award by a parent of one of her former students. WATCH: Spectrum News1 / WKBN
Jody Perrin, 2004, Graphic Design, director of marketing and communications at SUNY Jamestown Community College, received the State University of New York Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Professional Service. Perrin started to work at JCC in 2008 as a graphic designer and was promoted to her current position in 2014. She previously worked for Pegasus Printing Group in marketing and graphic design, and Humility of Mary Health Partners in public relations and graphic design.
Joe Havasi, 2004, master of Business Administration, was named vice president, natural resources at Compass Minerals. Havasi will oversee real estate transactions and land-use planning and to secure necessary surface rights, mineral rights and water rights for the company’s global portfolio of mineral extraction and manufacturing locations. Havasi serves on the Great Salt Lake Advisory Council, the Salinity Advisory Council and the Utah Department of Environmental Quality Water Quality Board. He also holds a bachelor’s degree in Geology from Denison University.
Karnina Szymanski, 2004, Accounting, has been named chief customer officer at Bold Penguin, a leading digital quote and bind insurance platform. Szymanski joined Bold Penguin in 2019 as vice president of Strategic Partnerships and then later served as president of Insurance, where she developed and executed the strategic vision for insurance carriers and wholesale operations while increasing their utilization of Bold Penguin’s products and services. In the newly created role, she will oversee relationships with Bold Penguin’s customer base and drive efforts to measure and enhance a seamless and consistent customer experience. Before joining Bold Penguin, Szymanski held various leadership roles at Progressive and Farmers Insurance.
Robert Alexander Beachy, 2007, Education (Integrated English Language Arts 6-12), was recently named principal of Sopori Elementary School in Amado, Az., part of the Sahuarita Unified School District #30. Beachy has worked for the Sahuarita schools just outside Tuscon since 2008. In 2014, he earned a master's degree with distinction from Northern Arizona University, and was also named Teacher of the Year at Sahuarita High School. In 2015, he was named assistant principal at Sahuarita Middle School. In 2020, he was nominated as secretary/treasurer of the Arizona School Administrators Association for the middle level division. He was named principal of the elementary school in 2022.
Chirag Shah, 2007, Combined Sciences, a doctor in the Department of Radiation Oncology at the Cleveland Clinic, recently made a presentation titled “7-gene DCIS: [2022] Comparing Clinicopathologic Features” on OncologyTube. Shah is co-director of the Comprehensive Breast Program and serves as director of Clinical Research and director of Breast Radiation Oncology at the Clinicf. He earned a medical degree from Northeast Ohio Medical University. OncologyTube is the world's first and only video-sharing site for cancer professionals.
Robert Bole, 2008, Business Administration, recently graduated with a master’s of Business Administration from the Stern School of Business at New York University. He also has joined Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation's "Innovation and Fintech Team", where he will lead digital products for the America's Division.
’10s
Adrienne Fritz, 2013, Education, is the new principal at Rock Creek Elementary School. Fritz previously worked in the Youngstown City Schools as a classroom teacher and literacy coach. She also earned a master’s in Education from the American College of Education.
Bryan Schiraldi, 2016, Accounting, and 2018, master of Business Administration, is the new treasurer of the Youngstown City Schools. Schiraldi has spent mored than six years in finance, previously serving as the Lowellville School District treasurer. Before that, he was a credit analyst with Farmers National Bank of Canfield and worked as a staff accountant for The Zidian Group. Additionally, Schiraldi was an associate accountant at Packer Thomas.
Traci Zager, 2017, master of Business Administration, was a guest on the Dr. Andy Roark podcast. Zager, who earned a doctorate of Veterinary Medicine from Ohio State University and is now a veterinary communications manager with Nestle Purina Pet Care, talked about the role pets can play in domestic violence and keeping people in dangerous places. Zager currently teaches courses online to veterinary technician students at the California University of Pennsylvania and also served on the Animal Abuse Reporting Taskforce for the Ohio VMA, which helped to create educational materials on abuse reporting for Ohio veterinarians.
Bryant J. Croach, 2018, Accounting, has been promoted to the position of supervisor at Schroedel, Scullin & Bestic, a public accounting firm. Croach, a member of the Ohio Society of Certified Public Accountants, provides accounting, auditing and tax compliance services, as well as employee benefit plan auditing to clients.
Alanna Bebech, 2018, School Psychology, has received the 2022 Early Career Award in School Psychology from the Ohio School Psychologists Association. The award recognizes accomplishments of early career school psychologists in Ohio. Bebech works as a school psychologist in the Trumbull County Educational Service Center and has also served as president of Northeast Ohio Regional Association in School Psychology. She also is a part-time faculty member in the YSU School Psychology Program.
’20s
Liberty Local Schools first-grade teacher Darnelle Clark, 2020, master’s in Curriculum and Instruction, was awarded the 2022 Westminster College Alumni Citation Award. Clark graduated from Westminster in 2009 with a bachelor’s degree in Psychology. During the pandemic, Clark had severe complications of COVID-19. Still, she became widely known for her Youtube channel, Clark’s Cozy Corner, as an entertaining way to encourage students to read.
Krysta Wedge, 2022, Criminal Justice, was sworn into the Niles Police Department as a patrol officer. Wedge has previous experience with Brookfield Township Police.