Students celebrated at Penn State Hazleton Academic Achievement Awards

HAZLETON, Pa. — Penn State Hazleton recognized its students’ leadership and academic excellence during the campus’ annual Academic Achievement Awards on Thursday, May 2.  

Chancellor and Chief Academic Officer Elizabeth J. Wright, Assistant Director of Academic Affairs Lori Reno and Assistant Chief Academic Officer Amie Yenser presented the awards during the ceremony in the Dr. Thomas M. Caccese Gymnasium. Karen Stylianides, associate teaching professor of kinesiology and Faculty Senate president, served as faculty marshal.  

In her remarks, Wright noted that the students were much more than just outstanding scholars. She said they advocated for higher education funding, raised money to fight pediatric cancer and to support the local animal shelter, planned community events, led clubs and organizations, worked multiple jobs and cared for family members, all while pursuing their goals. 

“I want to express my gratitude to you all for all that you did to make this campus such a vibrant place,” Wright said. “We noticed and so did the rest of the Penn State community.” 

The following students received awards:  

Campus Honors Program

The honors medal is presented to currently enrolled honors students who have met the requirements of the Penn State Hazleton Honors Program, which include grade-point average requirements and the completion of honors coursework each semester. Students are invited to join the program based on demonstrated academic achievement and potential for growth. They enroll in specially designed honors courses, complete honors independent studies projects, and have an opportunity to take part in enrichment activities.

This year’s recipients are Jonah Michael Baksa, Hazleton; John Thomas Bindas, Drums; Morgan Taylor Dwyer, Hazleton; Ayden William Edwards, Annville; Kevin Richard Fergel, West Hazleton; Rachael Ann Gerfin, Kingsley; Rensford D. Greene Jr., East Stroudsburg; Tina Huang, Effort; Matthew Janson, Bloomsburg; Kendall Rae Lobb, Pen Argyl; Jadon John Matriccino, Hazle Township; Kush Mayurkumar Patel, West Hazleton; Katherine A. Rapp, Paxinos; Jenna Rose Rossell, McAdoo; Trevor John Ruggiero, Drums; Nicholas Surotchak, Coaldale; Brian James Tylutke, Exeter; Mary A. Walter, Lewisburg; and Yokaira Concepcion, Hazleton. 

Eric A. and Josephine S. Walker Award

This award recognizes students from Penn State Commonwealth campuses whose outstanding qualities of character, scholarship, leadership and citizenship have been directed into programs and services that have positively influenced fellow students and have contributed to the prestige and well-being of their campus and reputation of the University as a whole.

This year’s honoree is Tori L. Fox, Zion Grove.

The President Walker Award

This award is presented annually to undergraduate degree candidates and degree-seeking provisional students who have earned a 4.0 (A) cumulative grade-point average based on at least 12 graded Penn State credits completed during their first semester of admission. Candidates are eligible for this award if they have fewer than 36 Penn State credits earned. During the presidency of Eric A. Walker (1956-70), and with the approval of the Board of Trustees, the number of awards was increased in 1960. This award was renamed in honor of President Walker in 2021.

Recipients are Sarah E. Ballek, Effort; Alena M. Beebe, Le Raysville; Michael L. Berger, Weatherly; Steven Chang, Cambridge, Massachusetts; Ryan G. Coghill, Oneida; Abigail R. Dorneman, Drums; John P. Ebert, Nescopeck; Tyler M. Furedi, Wapwallopen; Jaelee C. Hewitt, New Rochelle, New York; Kevin Kim, Seoul, South Korea; Noah B. Kurian, Limerick; Megan E. Lapchak, Freeland; Catherine R. Lavallee, Mill Hall; Victoria W. Li, Mountain Top; Nicholas J. Liero, Easton; Connor N. Macalalad, Oxford, New Jersey; Alyssa G. Marlowe, Fredericksburg; Jonas R. Miguels, Naples, Florida; Isabella M. Mystkowski, Lehighton; Gracie E. Nallon, New Ringgold; Alexandra Nikolaychuk, Whitehall; Favour O. Ogungbe, White Marsh, Maryland; Shreyas Sudhakar, Bangalore, India; Mary A. Walter, Lewisburg; Kaylee M. Wilk, Walnutport; and Tamina Winkler, McAdoo.  

President Sparks Award

This award is presented annually to those undergraduate degree candidates who have earned a 4.00 (A) cumulative grade-point average based on at least 36 graded Penn State credits. Candidates are eligible for this award if they have not exceeded 59 total credits earned. The award is named for Penn State President Edwin Earle Sparks (1908-20).

Earning the award this year is Jeff Lin, Berwick.

Evan Pugh Scholar Award – Junior

These scholars are those students who are in the upper 0.5% of their respective classes and have completed at least 48 graded Penn State credits and at least 60 cumulative credits with no more than 92 cumulative credits, at the end of the fall semester of the academic year in which the award is given. Candidates are eligible if they have been full-time Penn State undergraduate students for at least four semesters prior to selection. The students this year have cumulative grade-point averages of 4.0. The award is named for Evan Pugh, Penn State’s first president (1859-64). This year’s winners are:  

Kaylynn Brumbaugh, Cabot; Cierra Hart, Hazleton; Ian Matthew Kramer, Drums; and Nicolas Andrew Molchan, Fayetteville.  

Evan Pugh Scholar Award – Senior

These scholars are those students who are in the upper 0.5% of their respective classes and have completed at least 48 graded Penn State credits, with more than 92.1 cumulative credits, at the end of the fall semester of the academic year in which the award is given. Candidates are eligible if they have been full-time Penn State undergraduate students for at least four semesters prior to selection. The senior this year has a cumulative grade-point average of 4.0. The award is named for Evan Pugh, Penn State’s first president (1859-64).

The recipient is Matthew Janson, Bloomsburg.

Lifetime Learning Award

This award is presented to a student whose persistence and dedication to lifelong learning is evidenced by a continued commitment to academic coursework at Penn State over a period of more than five years.

This year’s recipient is Matthew Hilty, Slatington.

Scholar’s Lion Award – College

This award is presented to currently enrolled Penn State Hazleton full-time degree students who have earned the highest grade-point average (minimum 3.8) in their college and have completed at least 45 Penn State credits by the end of the fall semester of the academic year the award is given.

Recipients are: Agricultural Sciences: Morgan Dwyer, Hazleton; Business: Matthew Swanton, Bangor; and Jacob Koval, Drums; Division of Undergraduate Studies: Daniel Reed, Mahanoy City; Engineering: Ian Kramer, Drums; and Liberal Arts: Kendall Lobb, Pen Argyl.  

Scholar’s Lion Award – Campus Associate Degree Program

This award is presented to currently enrolled Penn State Hazleton full-time or part-time degree students who have earned the highest grade-point average (minimum 3.8) in their program and have completed at least 40 Penn State credits by the end of the fall semester of the academic year the award is given.

The recipients are: Medical Laboratory Technology: Kaylynn Brumbaugh, Cabot; and Physical Therapist Assistant: Andrew Nadler, Astoria, New York.  

Scholar’s Lion Award - Campus Baccalaureate Degree Program

This award is presented to currently enrolled Penn State Hazleton full-time or part-time degree students who have earned the highest grade-point average (minimum 3.8) in their program and have completed at least 104 Penn State credits by the end of the fall semester of the academic year the award is given.

This year’s recipients are: Business: Tina Huang, Effort; Information Technology: Freilin Pujols Moreta, Hazleton; and Project and Supply Chain Management: Tina Huang, Effort.  

Academic Achievement Award

This award is presented to currently enrolled Penn State Hazleton full-time or part-time students who have earned a cumulative grade-point average of 3.7 or higher by the end of the fall semester of the academic year the award is given.

Students earning this award are: Nayrovi Abreu De La Cruz, Hazle Township; Jabril Albane, Hazleton; Alberiluz Alcantara, Hazleton; Khadija Jasem Alhosani, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates; Brinley Altemus, Stroudsburg; Alison Andes, Mountain Top; Carlos Arias, Hazleton; Robinderpal Bahl, Mountain Top; Sarah Ballek, Effort; Gianna Barilla, Drums; Imani Becarie, Shamokin Dam; Alena Beebe, Le Raysville; Michael Berger, Weatherly; Collin Bogdon, Mountain Top; Lorna Bragg, Sugarloaf; Zachary Brannigan, Mountain Top; Kaylynn Brumbaugh, Cabot; Kaycee Cadden, Allentown; Dylan Carney, Drums; Steven Chang, Cambridge, Massachusetts; Jace Chernesky, Ringtown; Ryan Coghill, Oneida; Franklin Collazo, Drums; Samara Cornejo, Long Pond; Tommy Coronado, Hazleton; Rianna Cousins, New Rochelle, New York; Brandon Crockford, Drums; Aiden Derr, Bloomsburg; Abigail Dorneman, Drums; Morgan Dwyer, Hazleton; John Ebert, Nescopeck; Cristian Fabian, Freeland; Kevin Fergel, West Hazleton; Jamie Flores, Beaver Meadows; Justin Folk, Barnesville; Tyler Furedi, Wapwallopen; Jeremy Geisinger, Forty Fort; Joseph Gibbons, Plains; Thomas Giraldi, Mountain Top; Matthew Greenfield, Stroudsburg; Connor Haggerty, Inkerman; Gwendolyn Harris, Hazleton; Cierra Hart, Hazleton; Scott Hart, Hazleton; Jaelee Hewitt, New Rochelle, New York; Tina Huang, Effort; Matthew Janson, Bloomsburg; Azaria Johnson, Richmond Hill, Georgia; Kyle Jones, East Stroudsburg; Adele Junge, Kempton; Jacob Kepping, Berwick; Kevin Kim, Seoul, South Korea; Cassandra Kizis, Dallas; Matthew Kostyal, Drums; Jacob Koval, Drums; Ian Kramer, Drums; Raymond Krezel, Stroudsburg; Alyssa Kuba, Sugarloaf; Noah Kurian, Limerick; Megan Lapchak, Freeland; Lory Large Castro, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic; Catherine Lavallee, Mill Hall; Mark Lee, Sanchong District, Taiwan; Kacie Lewis, San Dimas, California; Victoria Li, Mountain Top; Nicholas Liero, Easton; Wendy Lin, King of Prussia; Kendall Lobb, Pen Argyl; Connor Macalalad, Oxford, New Jersey; Ross Manigo, Blakeslee; Alyssa Marlowe, Fredericksburg; Edward Martonick, Hazleton; Jadon Matriccino, Hazle Township; Isaac Mertz, White Haven; Hannah Michael, Watsontown; Jonas Miguels, Naples, Florida; Nicolas Molchan, Fayetteville; Erynn Mullins, East Earl; Isabella Mystkowski, Lehighton; Andrew Nadler, Astoria, New York; Gracie Nallon, New Ringgold; Cheyenne Ney, Lykens; Jack Nichols, Sugarloaf; Alexandra Nikolaychuk, Whitehall; Favour Ogungbe, White Marsh, Maryland; Daniel Ortiz, West Hazleton; Afolabi Osinuga, Lagos, Nigeria; Nazareth Paniagua-Perez, Shenandoah; Astara Passante, Mountain Top; Kush Patel, West Hazleton; Ehlauna Penn, Kunkletown; Andre Amilcar Pizarro Aguero, Lima, Peru; Gretchen Pucklavage, Tamaqua; Freilin Pujols Moreta, Hazleton; Roberto Ramirez, Hazleton; Michelle Ramirez, Freeland; Richard Ray, Weatherly; Daniel Reed, Mahanoy City; Ethan Rehrig, Walnutport; Gianna Reynolds, Weatherly; Rebecca Rich, Bethlehem; Bruno Rodriguez, Hazleton; Jenna Rossell, McAdoo; Saraiha Rossi, Drums; Trevor Ruggiero, Drums; Connor Rushing, Newtown; Erin Sackey, Staten Island, New York; Fatima Santana Valdez, Hazleton; Sizeline Senat, Milford, Delaware; Robert Shafer, Mountain Top; Christian Smith, Drums; Raymond Snyder, Pottsville; Andrew Sodergren, Mountain Top; Shreyas Sudhakar, Bangalore, India; Matthew Swanton, Bangor; Garrett Timco, Coal Township; Adam Torres Encarnacion, Hazleton; Brian Tylutke, Exeter; Elbania Ventura Peralta, Hazleton; Zachary Walp, Drums; Mary Walter, Lewisburg; Shaojie Wang, Nanjing, China; Amber Waters, Millsboro, Delaware; Hailey Watkins, Drums; Riley Wehr, Summit Hill; Brenna Wehrenberg, Wapwallopen; Kaylee Wilk, Walnutport; Topaz Williams Fripp, Waxhaw, North Carolina; Kate Wilson, Jonestown; Tamina Winkler, McAdoo; and Taylor Young-Bottomley, West Hazleton.  

Research Symposium Awards:  

Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences  

First place: Jacob Kepping, “Death Across Ancient Mediterranean Societies.” Research adviser: Eileen Morgan, assistant teaching professor of English.  

Second place: Imani Becarie, “Comparative Analysis: American vs. Caribbean School Systems." Research adviser: Eileen Morgan, assistant teaching professor of English.  

Third place: Kendall Lobb “Is Telehealth Effective in Treating Patients?” Research adviser: Eileen Morgan, assistant teaching professor of English.   

Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) 

First place: Matthew Greenfield, Isabella Mystkowski and Issa Rodriguez, “Preliminary Testing of Brook Trout Microsatellite Markers for Population Analysis." Research adviser: Megan Schall, assistant professor of biology.  

Second place: Trevor Ruggiero and Isabella Colyer, “Toward Photochromic Diarylethenes for Use in Metal-Organic Frameworks.” Research adviser: Dan Patel, assistant professor of chemistry.  

Third place: Morgan Dwyer, Megan Lapchak and Mary Walter, “Sequencing Analysis for Trophic Studies on Invasive Flathead Catfish.” Research adviser: Megan Schall, assistant professor of biology.  

University Libraries' Undergraduate Research Award: Excellence in Information Literacy Award:   

Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM)  

First place: Dario Lobo and Brian Tylutke, “Providing Net-Zero Power for Local Community Park.” Research adviser: Joseph Ranalli, associate professor of engineering.  

Second place: Morgan Dwyer, Megan Lapchak and Mary Walter, “Sequencing Analysis for Trophic Studies on Invasive Flathead Catfish.” Research adviser: Megan Schall, assistant professor of biology.  

Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences  

First place: Alonna Weaver, “Does History Repeat Itself: An Analysis into the Potential Connections between 1967-69 and 2020-23." Research adviser: Shannon Richie, reference and instruction librarian.  

Second place: Kendall Lobb, “Is Telehealth Effective in Treating Patients?" Research adviser: Eileen Morgan, assistant teaching professor of English.  

Mathematics Olympiad Award

The Olympiad is open to all students, whereas students currently taking Math 140 or higher are strongly encouraged to participate. The group of interested students is given a set of 5 to 8 non-standard problems to work on over a period from 6 to 8 weeks. To facilitate the students' creativity, faculty involved with the Olympiad introduce the group to some methods/ideas that are not traditionally covered in pre-calculus/calculus courses. Submitted solutions are graded and winners are chosen.  

First Place: Jonas Miguels, Naples, Florida 

Second Place: Mark Lee, Sanchong District, Taiwan  

Third Place: Svyatoslav Gudzovatyy, Stroudsburg  

Student of the Month Awards

Established in the fall of 2017 by Penn State Hazleton Faculty Senate's Committee on Student Relations, the Student of the Month award recognizes students for accomplishments outside of the classroom and off the field in areas such as civility, academic improvement, community care and activism, personal achievement and overcoming obstacles, and much more. Any student, faculty or staff members may nominate any student they feel is deserving of the award. All currently enrolled, full-time (12 or more credits) students at Penn State Hazleton are eligible for nomination.  

September: Penn State Hazleton new student orientation (NSO) leaders: Alberiluz Alcantara, Hazleton; Nicholas Pajovich, Berwick; Richard Ray, Weatherly; and Jessica Tineo, Hazleton  

October: Gabriel Bragg, Sugarloaf  

November: Ámbar De La Rosa, Hazleton 

January: Isaiah Lewis, New Rochelle, New York; and Joel Melo, Hazleton 

February: Richard Ray, Weatherly 

April: Noah Kurian, Limerick  

M. Leonard Shaevel Award

This award is presented in memory of M. Leonard Shaevel, who taught physics at Penn State Hazleton from 1967 until his death in 1982. It consists of a cash award and is given to a student with a high grade-point average enrolled in science who best exemplifies Shaevel’s educational values, including strong work ethic, persistence, and a commitment to science and scientific inquiry.

The winner of this year’s award is Morgan Dwyer, Hazleton.