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> (Above left) The Etta Express made it to the NCAA Division III Mideast Regionals this year and finished with a 27-18 overall season
> (Above right) The Wunnenberg 38H wellhead was installed and dedicated during a mid-April ceremony on campus. Derek Krieg ’19 and fellow members of the Energy Business Alliance secured donations and help with installation of the Marcellus-style wellhead, which was dedicated in memory of the late Joel Wunnenberg ’20
> (Bottom left) Putnam the Pio helped raise money to support Harvest of Hope during May’s First Friday event in downtown Marietta
> (Bottom right) Instructor Ann Kaufman found the perfect place to conduct her Education class earlier this spring — on the lawn in front of Erwin Hall

Transitions

Class of 2018 excited, ready for what comes next!

He put in the hard work and was ready for life’s next challenges, but Evan Hensel ’18 couldn’t resist getting a little nostalgic as he prepared for ��ݮ��Ƶ’s 181st Commencement.

“I’ve fallen in love with the ��ݮ��Ƶ community,” says the Strasburg, Ohio, native. “There are endless opportunities for involvement and leadership if one is willing to put in the work to pursue them.”

Hensel was one of 252 undergraduates to receive a diploma on May 6, while an additional five master’s degrees were awarded. It was also the first class to wear navy blue caps and gowns with a white stole — something the MCAA has been requesting for years.

There were also two Doctor of Humane Letters degrees handed out to Don ’81 and Leslie Ritter ’85. They also received the first Bachelor of Arts degrees in Music Therapy — a program they helped start with a $1 million investment in December 2016.

“You all have a tremendous foundation of knowledge freshly acquired from Marietta,” says Don, who was the 2018 Commencement speaker. “It will serve you well as it has for myself and many others who have sat in your chairs previously.”
Another graduate was Ghana-native Baffour Nkrumah-Ababio ’18, who delivered the first-place Jewett Oration.

“Graduation is all about celebrating stories. Right from the moment we stepped foot in Marietta, we all took different paths, and at graduation we get to celebrate how our different paths merged at that moment,” he says. “Perhaps the most exciting thing about commencement is that it’s all about celebration, whether one was the best in class or not. On graduation day, every one of us is celebrated and that feeling is one that I will be carrying with me for a while.”

Both Hensel and Nkrumah-Ababio earned degrees in Petroleum Engineering. Hensel will soon begin his career starting as an offshore production engineer with Anadarko Petroleum, while Nkrumah-Ababio is hoping to find employment in the U.S. for a year before attending graduate school.

“Marietta has had a big impact on my future,” Nkrumah-Ababio says. “I came here wanting to leave as a petroleum engineer. I left with a petroleum engineering degree but a burning desire to want to help others realize their potential. Marietta helped me find my passion and because of that I am certain the rest of my life is going to be rich and fulfilling, and I cannot be thankful enough.”