April 2021

The University of Scranton's annual End of the Year Drive, hosted by The Center for Service & Social Justice, collects all the items that students would normally discard at the end of the academic year. A team of more than 20 underclassmen undertakes the effort to collect, sort and distribute the donations, volunteering to stay on campus after final exams.

Donations are given to area agencies in need such as Friends of the Poor, Community Invention Center, and St. Francis of Assisi Clothing House and food pantry.

Boxes will be placed in all residence halls and The DeNaples Center on Tuesday, May 4 and Wednesday, May 5 and will remain there until graduation.

For more information or questions, please contact Avianna.Carilli@scranton.edu or Marino.Angeloni@scranton.edu.

The eighth installment of the Manresa Retreat occurred the weekend of April 17 at the Bryn Mawr Retreat Center in Honesdale. Over the span of three days, the retreat focused on exploring the life’s work of the founding Jesuit saint, St. Ignatius of Loyola, and some of his unique contributions to the philosophy of love and religion.

“Manresa was the first retreat of my life and I didn’t know what to expect. I went in with an open mind and came out with new perspectives about God and spirituality. It was a great experience to meet new people and immerse myself in the University culture,” said Matthew Morris ’23.

One of the most outstanding accomplishments of St. Ignatius was his Spiritual Exercises, a prayer and meditation guide written in the town of Manresa in 1548. Ignatius provides a well-developed overview of the Spiritual Exercises in the first five stanzas of its introductory Principle and Foundation. This Principle helped the Manresa retreatants explore the concepts of love for self, for God, and for others. Retreatants uncovered in prayer and in various discussions the meaning of finding God in all things, gratitude and reverence, faith that does justice, Ignatian indifference, and magis and discernment. 

"My experience with the Manresa retreat has been nothing but positive. It has allowed me to recognize the gifts that I see in myself and how I can use them to impact the world around me," said HollyAnn Serp ‘21.

In what was a wonderful and impressionable weekend, everybody left in appreciation of the fact that we are all truly from love, of love, and for love.

Each year, about 1.9 billion Muslims fast for a month. But do you know why? Come join us Thursday, April 29, from 6:30-7:40 p.m. for Ramadan Around the World, a Zoom event organized by the University’s Department of World Languages and Cultures and presented by French Fulbright Foreign Language Teaching Assistant Chama Laassassy and Arabic Fulbright Foreign Language Teaching Assistant Belal Elkurd.

Ramadan is usually the ninth month of the Islamic calendar and is considered to be one of the holiest months in Islam. As part of observing Ramadan, Muslims throughout the world participate in a month of fasting, which involves observers not eating or drinking anything during daylight hours. Prayer is also a major component in observing Ramadan.

If you have any questions about the event, do not hesitate to reach out to Hannah Jackson at hannah.jackson@scranton.edu. Please use this link to attend the event.

We look forward to (virtually) seeing you!

The University of Scranton’s Department of World Languages and Cultures invites you to join us in celebrating the Dragon Boat Festival Thursday, April 22, at 7 p.m. The event will be hosted by visiting lecturer of Chinese Hsiang-Ling (Charlize) Wang via Zoom.

The Dragon Boat Festival is an annual tradition in China that is normally celebrated the fifth day of the month of the traditional Chinese calendar. The festival is a celebration to commemorate the life and death of Qu Yuan, a famous Chinese scholar. There are various traditions associated with the Dragon Boat festival including eating rice dumplings, making an egg stand at noon, and—of course—racing dragon boats!

If you have any questions about the event, be sure to contact Charlize at hsiangling.wang@scranton.edu or Hannah Jackson at hannah.jackson@scranton.edu. Registration is required for this event. To register, please click here.

We look forward to (virtually) seeing you there!

Forty-eight University of Scranton education majors served as student teachers during the fall and spring semesters at 15 local schools in the following 10 school districts: Carbondale Area, Dunmore, Lackawanna Trail, Lakeland, Mid Valley, Northeastern Educational Intermediate Unit, North Pocono, Valley View, Wayne Highlands and Western Wayne.

The following is a list of undergraduate and graduate students who served as student teachers and the schools to which they were assigned during the fall semester.

Kayleigh Basovsky of Hillsdale, New Jersey, taught at Valley View Intermediate;

Meghan Bode of Sparta, New Jersey, taught at Lackawanna Trail Elementary Center;

Sarah Collette of Oyster Bay, New York, taught at Fell Charter School;

Angelica Divietro Colontonio of Little Ferry, New Jersey, taught at Commonwealth Charter Academy;

Corinne Estes of Ivyland taught at Valley View Elementary;

Emmaline Freeman of Walton, New York, taught at Fell Charter School;

Gillian Groom of Wantagh, New York, taught at Lackawanna Trail Elementary Center;

Margaret Kiess of Glen Rock, New Jersey, taught at Fell Charter School;

Katherine Roughan of Oceanside, New York, taught at Lackawanna Trail Elementary Center;

Leigh Scarano of Westfield, New Jersey, taught at Valley View Elementary;

Tylar Smith of Garden City, New York, taught at Mayfield Elementary School;

Julia Zendell of Suffern, New York, taught at Valley View Elementary.

The following is a list of undergraduate and graduate students who are serving as student teachers and the schools to which they have been assigned during the spring semester.

Alexandra Altier of Clarks Summit is teaching at Dunmore Elementary Center;

Michelle Brenneman of Auburn is teaching at Commonwealth Charter Academy;

Nadine Brosnan of Goshen, New York, is teaching at Commonwealth Charter Academy;

TaraRae Burns of Brooklyn, New York, is teaching at Dunmore Elementary;

Mia Carty of Short Hills, New Jersey, is teaching at Mid Valley Elementary Center;

Anna Christiansen of Honesdale is teaching at Commonwealth Charter Academy;

Daniel Damico of Wyckoff, New Jersey, is teaching at North Pocono High School;

Alba DeLeon of Somerset, New Jersey, is teaching at Commonwealth Charter Academy;

Kathleen DeTreux of Wayne is teaching at Evergreen Elementary;

Julia Dobel of Kenilworth, New Jersey, is teaching at Valley View Elementary;

Margaret Donnelly of New Hyde Park, New York, is teaching at Mid Valley Secondary Center;

Thomas Doyle of Florham Park, New Jersey, is teaching at Dunmore Learning Campus;

Michael Farry of South Abington Township is teaching at Mid Valley Secondary Center;

Shaelynn Guilfoyle of West Nyack, New York, is teaching at Mid Valley Elementary Center;

Angela Hendricks of Newtown is teaching at North Pocono Intermediate School;

Katheryn Hickey of South Huntington, New York, is teaching at Evergreen Elementary;

Megan Houlihan of New Milford is teaching at Commonwealth Charter Academy;

Regan Hughes of Scranton is teaching at Mid Valley Secondary Center;

Minori Koga of Scranton is teaching at Commonwealth Charter Academy;

Shane Maurer of Berkeley Heights, New Jersey, is teaching at Mid Valley Secondary Center;

Grace McAllister of Horsham is teaching at Mid Valley Elementary Center;

Katherine Melilli of Basking Ridge, New Jersey, is teaching at Commonwealth Charter Academy;

Anna Oliveri of Bridgewater, New Jersey, is teaching at North Pocono Intermediate School;

Lauren Ottomanelli of East Northport, New York, is teaching at Evergreen Elementary;

Jessica Persky of Wantagh, New York, is teaching at Commonwealth Charter Academy;

Christina Rombousek of Milford is teaching at Dunmore Elementary Center;

Nicole Rutman of Monmouth Junction, New Jersey, is teaching at Valley View Elementary;

Danielle Sauro of Armonk, New York, is teaching at Dunmore Elementary Center;

Angela Scurti of Melville, New York, is teaching at Commonwealth Charter Academy;

Molly Skinner of Reading, Massachusetts, is teaching at Lakeside Elementary School;

Caleigh Snead of Kings Park, New York, is teaching at Dunmore Elementary Center;

Allison Steitz of Basking Ridge, New Jersey, is teaching at Dunmore Learning Campus;

Mazie Stiles of Nyack, New York, is teaching at Mid Valley Elementary Center;

Mary Wolf of Malverne, New York, is teaching at Commonwealth Charter Academy;

Christiana Wood  of Marlboro, New York, is teaching at Lakeside Elementary School;

Megan Zinn of Bridgewater, New Jersey, is teaching at Valley View Elementary.

The results of the 2021-2022 Student Government Elections are in. Congratulations to all, including the first-ever all-female University Student Government Executive team. 

The results:

President & Vice President: 

Adrianna Smith & Claire Sunday 

Class of 2022:

Abril Lopez

Class of 2023:

Elizabeth Wescoe

Josephine Middleton

Kathleen Wallace

Clara Downey

Class of 2024:

David Reese

Caitlin Doughton

Jeremy Dickinson 

Thomas Elias 

Residential Senator: 

Henry Lembo

Off-Campus Senator: 

John Murphy 

Commuter Senator: 

Maggie Kowalewski 

Vanessa Moylan 

International Senator: 

Erica Jeanne Mascardo 

This article originally appeared in Campus Corner, our student-written blog.

With graduation only a few weeks away, many Scranton seniors are reflecting on their four years at Scranton.

Ashley Fischetti is an occupational therapy major at the University.

Her senior year has been filled with lots of friends and, most recently, lounging in the sun on campus.

“I’ve made so many memories with different people across different places on campus,” Fischetti said.

Out of all the places on campus, her favorite spot to relax?

“I love hammocking behind Alumni Memorial Hall.

A flame ignited in the hearts of students from Jesuit universities across the globe they discussed the unique ways in which their shared experience of Ignatian humanities shape their lives around the common goal of making the world a better place for all. Students from The University of Scranton, Loyola Andalucia en Seville in Spain and Universidad Antonio Ruiz de Montoya in Peru were moved by their common spiritual base as they learned from and with one another through a two-day virtual Ignatian Humanities event sponsored by Slattery Center for the Ignatian Humanities at Scranton.

“It was really fulfilling, more so in the personal than the academic level. It felt like our education is truly helping us have an effect in the world, and that we are not alone in the values we carry with us every day,” said Juan Galera, Loyola Andalucia en Seville.

The two-day event, held April 7-8, brought together more than 40 students from the three Jesuit universities to explore Ignatian humanities. The virtual event included breakout sessions with students from three continents in which they reacted to a lecture by Scranton Philosophy professor Duane Armitage, Ph.D., entitled, “Finding God in All Things: Jesuit Truism or Ignatian Truth?”

 “Interacting with other students from Jesuit universities around the world, especially on the central Ignatian topic of social justice, facilitated a profound examination into how we apply Jesuit values and principles toward the injustices we witness in the world today,” said Isaiah Livelsberger, a senior at The University of Scranton from New Oxford, Pennsylvania.

Alberto Gonzales Guzmán of the Universidad Antonio Ruiz de Montoya found the discussion sessions “exciting and challenging. The distances and differences of our peoples are not as many as we think they are. Each partner experiences the emotion and challenge and transmits it vividly. We are not alone, we are a great community.”

“I felt that my experience was heard and valued by people who share the same convictions, each participant had an open heart to different social conflicts,” said Naiara Cruz Ramirez Cabrera, Universidad Antonio Ruiz de Montoya. “Especially in this pandemic situation that has exposed humanity’s inability to act together, spaces like this promote citizen participation and the vocation of service in the function of our community and those who need it most.”

Dr. Armitage argued in his keynote lecture that social justice without spirituality risks devolving into mere Marxism. He explained in his address that for St. Ignatius of Loyola, the founder of the Jesuits, God is Christ, and that “Christ is the crucified, that is, the victim, the marginalized, the weak.” Social justice must include what students in the event came to call “spiritual justice” for it to truly mimic Christ’s teaching on reconciliation and the divinity of every human life.

“Thus to find God, Christ, in ‘all things’ is primarily to encounter God in the oppressed, the persecuted, the victimized, which of course provides justification for the social justice ethic of siding with the weak,” said Dr. Armitage. “When we think of God then as Christ, as the victim, as the marginalized, as the weak, the idea of finding God ‘Christ’ in all things begins to take on new meaning, meaning that is thoroughly steeped in Social Justice.”

In addition to core Ignatian principles and teachings, the students shared another common idea: the hope the Ignatian Humanities event will grow in future years to involve more students, school and face-to-face dialog.

The University of Scranton’s Gail and Francis Slattery Center for the Ignatian Humanities was established to advance the University’s liberal arts tradition and to enhance the role it plays in the formation of students to become “men and women for and with others.”

College students across the country dream of “making a difference” in the world, but how does this lofty goal translate to their chosen professions as an occupational therapist, accountant or cybercrime investigator?

The University of Scranton received a $47,635 Network for Vocation in Undergraduate Education (NetVUE) program development grant to extend its efforts in helping students address that question. The grant will allow the University to extend to all four-years of study what is already a successful First-Year Seminar program that initiates and encourages student reflection on what it might mean to be called to be, in the Ignatian phrase, “men and women for and with others.”

“To have a “vocation” is to have a ‘calling’ or summons that comes to us from beyond us, urging us to offer particular kinds of service to God and others. Although often thought of only in a religious context, a vocation can extend to anyone in any field or career, and includes being called to the defining commitments of our lives, such as being a parent, friend or student.” said Charles Pinches, Ph.D., professor of theology and religious studies and director of the University’s First-Year Seminar. “The heart of the educational mission of the University is its commitment to form students to become ‘men and women for and with others.’ This mission brings to the surface the question of where our students are headed in their adult lives, and how a vision for this commitment can be encouraged within them.”

In 2013, the University implemented a three-credit First-Year Seminar taught by full-time faculty members and intended, in part, to introduce students to the Jesuit and Catholic mission of the University and grow student capabilities in critical and discerning thought.

With support from a 2013-15 NetVUE Program Development Grant and additional internal University funding, faculty who teach First-Year Seminar courses participated in workshops to encourage ways to consider mission and vocation related matters with Scranton’s incoming students. The current grant, which builds on work completed during that earlier grant, aims to institute a practice for incoming students whereby they write a “letter my future self” about what they hope for their lives, where they might be headed, and how they might best identify and use their gifts and talents. Initially composed within one of the 55 or so sections of the First-Year Seminar courses taught during the fall semester, that letter can be revisited and revised over the course of the student’s time at the University, with the help of peers and faculty guides and in light of a growing sense of the student’s vocations. Funding will support faculty training and program development for this initiative beginning this summer and continuing through the 2022-23 academic year.

The University is among is among a group of NetVUE members institutions selected to receive a grant, the purpose of which is to deepen vocational exploration and discernment among undergraduate students. NetVUE Program Development Grants are made possible through financial support to the Council of Independent Colleges (CIC) by Lilly Endowment Inc.

NetVUE is a nationwide network of colleges and universities formed to enrich the intellectual and theological exploration of vocation among undergraduate students. The initiative is administered by CIC with support from Lilly Endowment Inc. and members’ dues. The Lilly Endowment is a private philanthropic foundation, established by J.K. Lilly Sr. and his sons, Eli and J.K. Jr, of the firm Eli Lilly and Company.

ATTENTION:  GRADUATING SENIORS

Teacher of the Year Award

Each year the Graduating Senior Class selects its "Teacher of the Year." Beginning Monday, April 26, please vote for the full-time faculty member who you believe best exhibits the following characteristics:

• Maintains the highest standards of academic excellence and fairness.
• Inspires interest in the discipline through personal enthusiasm and dedication.
• Is consistently effective in communication.
• Is available outside of the classroom.

The award will be presented during Class Night on Friday, May 21, 2021.

HOW TO VOTE:  To cast your electronic ballot, access scranton.edu/toy

WHEN TO VOTE:  Monday, April 26, 9:00 a.m. - Friday, April 30, 4:00 p.m.

Remember a Faculty Member Whose Teaching Has Inspired You! 

The resources available through The University of Scranton’s Gerard R. Roche Center for Career Development are available to students as soon as they start at Scranton. The Career Roadmap, along with other resources on the Career Development website, provides students with year-to-year tips for their career success based on their major, beginning with their first-year on campus.

“It’s never too early to prepare for your career,” said Chris Whitney, director of the Gerard R. Roche Center for Career Development, who would encourage students to meet with the Center’s staff. “When we understand their unique skills, talents and goals, we can better help them to identify opportunities early on that will position them for success.”

The advice for the first-year student on the Career Roadmap was develop based on input from faculty, students and alumni. Tips include meeting with their academic advisors and getting to know their professors, as well as finding resources on campus to help students achieve and maintain strong G.P.A.s. The advice also suggests clubs and organizations on campus students can join, based on their majors, and enrichment programs offered by their colleges or academic departments in which students can participate.

During their four-years at Scranton, students can use a number of resources offered through the Center for Career Development to prepare or update their resumes or to schedule a mock interview. The Center also has tools students can use to build their LinkedIn profile, such as LinkedIn University for Students or the LinkedIn Profile Checklist and several resources to assist students looking for internships, including paid experiential learning opportunities.

In addition, the Center can provide resources to students who are undecided or thinking of changing their major, or who are applying to graduate or professional schools.

According to the First Destination Survey report by the Center for Career Development, 99 percent of Scranton’s class of 2019 graduates, at both the undergraduate and graduate level, reported being successful in their choice of career path of either employment or pursuing additional education within six months of graduation.

To learn more, visit the Center for Career Development website or use the drop-in zoom hours posted to speak with a career counselor.

The Multicultural Center in partnership with the Office of Campus Ministries Center for Service and Social Justice and the University Minister for Service and Social Justice at the University of Detroit Mercy are hosting a Virtual Social Justice Retreat on April 16 and April 17. Tentatively, the retreat will start on the evening of Friday, April 16 from 7 p.m.-9:30 p.m., and Saturday, April 17 from 10 a.m. -12:15 p.m. and from 1:30 p.m.- 4 p.m. Participants will receive a schedule once they complete their registration.

The goal of our Virtual Social Retreat is to provide both The University of Scranton and University of Detroit Mercy students with a space to engage in conversations on topics related to racial justice, migration, environmental, and educational justice. The retreat will feature student leaders? presenters and will offer opportunities to network, engage in small and large group sharing, individual reflection, and ending with each participant creating their r own action plan. Engage with us and, Register here.

We want to thank you in advance for your time, consideration, and support of our virtual retreat. Use the link on this post or on Royal Sync. We are looking to confirm our group for this by Monday, April 12.

If you have any questions, please reach out to Cathy Seymour, catherine.seymour@scranton.edu -OR- Jose Sanchez, jose.sanchez@scranton.edu.

Join us for a refreshing weekend in the mountains at Bryn Mawr Retreat Center for the Manresa Retreat from Friday evening, April 16 to Sunday afternoon April 18. This retreat is led by a team of students and will help us reflect on the Ignatian themes such as Finding God in All Things, Gratitude, and Justice and Service. Each participant will have their own bedroom and all Royals Safe Together protocols will be followed. All meals, snacks and transportation are included. The cost is $75, however fee assistance is available if the fee presents a hardship.

Register on Royal Sync here.

Please contact amy.hoegen@scranton.edu with any questions.

Graduating Class of 2021: The Multicultural Center is excited to announce its Donning of the Kente Stole Ceremony, which follows its Inaugural Ceremony last year. This event has a rich history at other colleges and universities and seeks to recognize and honor the success of graduating students from underrepresented backgrounds, particularly students of color. Participating graduates attend a ceremony where they are bestowed with a Kente stole that can be worn at Commencement as a symbol of their accomplishments. This year, the Donning of the Kente Stole Committee will be planning to host an in-person ceremony with graduates on campus (location to be announced) following our Royal Safe Together Plan. We will likely accommodate guests virtually. This ceremony will take place on Friday, May 21, at 4 p.m.

We invite all graduating students to visit our application on RoyalSync to learn more and register for the event if they feel it applies to them! The direct link to the application is here. The deadline to fill out the application is Friday, April 30 at 4 p.m. We hope you consider applying!

If you have any questions, please contact the assistant director of Cross Cultural Center, Jose Sanchez at jose.sanchez@scranton.edu or Student Leader of the Donning Kente Stole Ceremony, Committee Samiel Torres at samiel.torres@scranton.edu.