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On Shelves Now

Elise Lund ’11 recently published her first book, Puzzle Piece Phonics: First Grade through Corwin Literacy. She co-wrote the book with fellow teachers Carolyn Banuelos and Danielle James.

“I was a first-grade teacher in North Carolina when the standards changed to the Common Core. In order to meet the expectations of the new standards and reach children on all levels, PPP was developed,” Lund says. The kindergarten and second-grade editions are also current projects for the writing trio.

Since graduation, Lund has taught first grade at Cornelius Elementary in North Carolina, and is now mentoring in elementary schools and developing/implementing professional development for teachers to accompany her phonics curriculum.

Sue Amari ’73 published her second novel, The Year of the Red Fire Monkey, the stand-alone sequel to A Calculated Guess. “Both books follow a group of college friends reunited after their mid-seventies graduation from ��ݮ��Ƶ,” she says.

A Calculated Guess was chosen for the Best of 2016 list, Akron Beacon Journal.

Amari is the recipient of the Award of Excellence in Feature Writing from the Akron chapter of Women in Communications, and her articles have appeared in The Plain Dealer, Sun Newspapers, Chicken Soup and Cup of Comfort series. Both books are available through Amazon.com.

Oxford University Press published the 1965 Duke University Ph.D. dissertation written by the late George Gadbois ’59 on the Indian Federal Court and the beginnings of the Indian Supreme Court. The dissertation was published in April under the title, Supreme Court of India: The Beginnings. It is widely regarded as an excellent historical perspective to present-day problems of the Indian court. He also worked on another acclaimed book, Judges of the Supreme Court of India: 1950-1989.

Gadbois majored in History at Marietta, and served as President of Student Senate, played on the Pioneer golf team and earned an induction into Phi Beta Kappa before graduating and continuing his education at Duke University. He was the recipient of three senior Fulbright research fellowships and four from the American Institute of Indian Studies. Gadbois retired from teaching in the Political Science Department at the University of Kentucky.

Though previously he considered The Beginnings to be of little scholarly worth, Gadbois was convinced by Vikram Raghavan, lead counsel to the World Bank, that his dissertation had “enduring value.” Raghavan and Vasujith Ram were editors for the book after Gadbois died in February 2017. Since its release, there have been formal book launches throughout India, as well as a panel discussion of the book at Harvard Law School.

 
> Steve Gregory ’68 meets Barbara Garneau Kelley ’81 and they compare their MC letter jackets in her office at the Hearing Loss Association of America (HLAA) in Bethesda, Maryland. Their professional paths cross because Barbara is executive director of HLAA and Steve is on the New Jersey Relay Advisory Board and is a consumer advocate. Steve began the ��ݮ��Ƶ cross country team in 1964 after pleading with Athletic Director Bill Whetsell to start a program. Coach Whetsell gave him the title of “student coach” and Steve recruited the team, designed the course, ran the workouts, and drove the team to meets. Marietta cross country continues today thanks to Steve. Barbara was on the Marietta women’s crew under the coaching of Norm Lindamood when she earned her letter jacket. They commented, “Well, at least the jackets still fit us!”

 
> Beth Thompson Miller ’73, Barbara Perry Fitzgerald ’73 and Bruce Miller ’70 know how to Bring Forth a Pioneer at Uluru (Ayers Rock) in the Australian outback. This is the 20^th country this trio has visited together over their nearly 50-year friendship. 

 
> Generations of Marietta alumni celebrating together. (From left) Jodie Lazasz-Burnett ’90 (Alpha Xi Delta), Rick Lazasz ’93 (Alpha Sigma Phi), Colleen Kelley-Lazasz ’92 (Sigma Kappa), Quinci Jones ’20 (Sigma Kappa) and Diana Porter Jones ’92 (Sigma Kappa). Rick Lazasz and Colleen Kelley-Lazasz are celebrating their 25^th wedding anniversary. Diana and Colleen have remained best friends for 30 years!​

 
> Alan Varrasso ’96 has been promoted to Chief Information Officer overseeing technology support for Chase’s consumer, small business and auto lending businesses. In this role, he will lead technology delivery to the firm’s more than 5,000 branches and more than 16,000 ATMs. His team will also provide technology support for Chase’s 2.5 million small business customers and the firm’s $70 billion portfolio of auto loans and leases. Alan was formerly Chief Technology Officer for Chase Consumer Banking. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Science from ��ݮ��Ƶ in 1996. Alan started in 40 games for the Pioneer football team, serving as a team captain during his junior and senior seasons. He is a leader of the JPMorgan Chase Technology Hub in Columbus, which includes more than 5,000 technology professionals. He resides in Granville, Ohio, with his wife, Silvana, and their four children.

 
> Ryan Marr ’98, Kris Cooper ’98, (second row) Eric Cooper ’97, Craig Trapp ’97 and Ben Dittmar ’97 met the weekend of May 17-20 for a tour of Bourbon Trail in and around Lexington, Kentucky. They found this sign at Heaven Hill Distillery. The group also toured Town Branch, Woodford Reserve, Three Boys, Buffalo Trace, Maker’s Mark and Limestone Branch distilleries. No other pictures will be released.

 
> On March 9, 2018, Jake Verdoorn ’11 married Charissa Pederson in Cartagena, Colombia. In attendance were Chandler T. Wittel ’11, who is expecting his first child with Laura Finck Wittel ’12, Brendan George ’11, Celia Brockway Macchia ’11, Emma Vierheller ’12 and Joshua A. Maxwell ’11, who is starting his doctorate in leadership studies in the fall. This completes all four marriages in the group of friends, and is perfectly timed with the ending of phase 3 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

 
> Hayley Montgomery ’15 (Alpha Xi Delta) and Brandon Stewart ’15, PA’17 (Delta Tau Delta) were married on Aug. 15, 2017, in Sunbury, Ohio. Haley, who majored in Intervention Specialist Education, and Brandon, who majored in Biochemistry and also graduated from Marietta’s Physician Assistant Studies Graduate Program, live in Beverly, Ohio. Their reception was held at Irongate Equestrian Center. The Stewarts shared a photo of themselves with fellow ��ݮ��Ƶ Pioneers: Dr. Carole Wylie Hancock ’75, Lindsey Kudaroski ’14, Ryan Turnewitsch ’15, Mitch Pieronek ’18, Justin McGinnis ’15, Janelle Patterson ’15, Blake Szkoda ’16, Phil Shaw ’14, Marci Estock ’13, Allison Sells ’15, Nick Brady ’15, Jen DeSantis ’15, Kaely Becker ’15, Sydney Gregory ’17, Karl Grant ’15, Shannon Garrison ’19, Taylor Hanigosky ’16, Keenan Hamilton ’15 and Jonah Mitchell ’18.

Alumni have fond memories of serving on Board of Trustees

Grant Callery ’68 didn’t have to think long about his favorite memory of being a member of ��ݮ��Ƶ’s Board of Trustees for the past 15 years.

Digging through a satchel, Callery pulled out a copy of the first diploma he signed for Lindsey Marie Anderson, who graduated on Aug. 2, 2008, as a member of the Physician Assistant Program. Callery served as Chair of the Board from 2008-11.

“I can still remember as I was signing it, I said out loud, ‘I can’t believe I’m signing a diploma from my alma mater,’ ” he says.

Callery and Elliott Thrasher ’62 have completed their time on the Board and are now both members of the Cotton Society, which is made up of past Board members. As a part of that society, they will receive regular communication to remain connected with the work of the Trustees. Their final meeting was on May 8.

Callery joined the Board soon after his daughter, Megan Callery Peluso ’03, graduated. Callery retired in 2012 as the Executive Vice President and General Counsel at the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) in Washington, D.C.

“The best part for me has been that this was a working Board with a serious mission,” says Callery, who is now a Trustee Emeritus. “Everybody was great to work with, and they took their responsibilities to ��ݮ��Ƶ seriously, and we always had a good degree of humor.”

Thrasher, who is now a Life Associate Trustee, completed a five-year term on the Board and says he enjoyed his experience.

“I’m going to miss coming back to Marietta three times a year,” says Thrasher, who splits his time with his wife, Antra, in Lexington and Mattapoisett, Massachusetts. “It has been a great five years, and at 78 I decided it was time to observe from the sidelines.”

Callery says he missed just two meetings in 15 years.

“I’ve put more than 50,000 miles on my cars and probably spent more than 100 nights in the Marietta Hampton Inn,” he says. “It’s all been worth it. This is probably the most rewarding thing I have done in my professional career.”

In Memoriam

An error was made in the Winter 2018 edition of Marietta Magazine that incorrectly included alumna Margaret Doonan Pierce ’71 in the obituary section. Thankfully, Margaret is alive and well! The editors of Marietta Magazine sincerely apologize for this mistake.

Dr. Margaret Ross (4/19/1927 — 4/2/2018)

��ݮ��Ƶ mourns the loss of a longtime faculty and staff member who impacted the lives of countless students during a nearly 25-year tenure.

Dr. Margaret Ross, Marietta’s former Counseling Center Director and Professor of Counseling Services, died on April 2, 2018, in Marietta. She was 90.

She came to Marietta in 1967 as a counselor. In 1968, she began a program of small group counseling sessions for students and became the Director of the Counseling Center. Additionally, she served as a freshman orientation director, trainer for the Institute for Education and Training in Business, a professor in the McDonough Leadership Program, and as an ancillary staff member for Marietta Memorial Hospital’s Mental Health Unit. She also wrote two books and numerous professional articles.

Though she retired in 1992 from her full-time duties at the College, she continued to teach in the McDonough Leadership Program for many years.

Dr. John R. Michel (7/10/1939 — 5/15/2018)

A leader in his field of applied mathematics and a dedicated professor to numerous budding mathematicians, Dr. John Michel, Professor Emeritus of Mathematics, left an indelible mark on the ��ݮ��Ƶ community, as well as in the overall field of math education. Sadly, Dr. Michel passed away on May 5, 2018.

Prior to joining the faculty at ��ݮ��Ƶ in 1970, Dr. Michel was a mathematics research fellow, teaching assistant and research assistant at the University of Denver, and then worked as a systems analyst and mathematician for the California Institute of Technology’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Because of his active involvement in improving math education, Marietta was among the first institutions to participate in “Reformed Calculus” projects, which originated from Duke and Harvard universities. He also wrote grant requests to the National Science Foundation that resulted in the math department receiving computers and software in 1989 to offer calculus computer labs.

Known for his excellence in teaching, he was recognized twice with the Edward G. Harness Fellowship. He received the ��ݮ��Ƶ Service Award in 2002. He retired in 2004, earning the title, Professor Emeritus of Mathematics.

The Michel family is establishing the John and Katharine Michel Fund for Mathematics at ��ݮ��Ƶ. Contributions may be sent by mail to: ��ݮ��Ƶ Office of Advancement, 215 Fifth St., Marietta, Ohio 45750; or designate the fund online at: .