Graduate School Alumni Society

James Caltagirone, M.S., Exercise Science
Sports Columnist and Freelance Writer

Joseph (Jay) Kovacs, III, MMgt., Business Administration
Chief Innovation Officer, Axient Corporation

Matthew Krott, Ph.D., Mechanical Engineering
Mechanical Engineer, Aurora Flight Sciences – A Boeing Company

Ken Graham, Ph.D. Business
Senior Advisor, Rowhill Consulting, Inc.

Sharon Melzer, Master of Public Administration
Foreign Affairs Officer, U.S. Department of State, and Adjunct Professor at the Elliott School of International Affairs at the George Washington University

Cathy Rusinko, Ph.D., Business Administration; M.A., Economics; B.A., English; B.S., Economics
Professor of Management and Coordinator for Sustainability, Thomas Jefferson University

College of Agricultural Sciences
Merrilee G. Anderson, Ph.D., Plant Pathology
Professor, Science and Mathematics, Mount Aloysius College

College of Arts and Architecture
Bimal Balakrishnan, Ph.D., Mass Communications, M.S., Architecture
Associate Dean of Research and Professor, Mississippi State University

Donald P. Bellisario College of Communications
Harriet Huell Lampkin, Master of Arts
Executive Vice President of Legal, INLIVIAN

Commonwealth Colleges
Kathleen G. Hume, MMgt., Healthcare Administration
Healthcare Consultant

College of Earth and Mineral Sciences
Vacant

College of Education
Amy Thul-Sigler, D.Ed., Adult Education
Assistant Teaching Professor, Department of Health Policy and Administration, College of Health and Human Development, Penn State

College of Engineering
Jonathan U. Dougherty, Ph.D., Architectural Engineering
Vice President, Strategic Initiatives, Providence Engineering

College of Health and Human Development
David M. Kiser, Ph.D., Physiology; M.S., HPER Exercise Physiology
former Vice President of Eastman Kodak Company and Vice President of International Paper, Consultant in the areas of environment, health, safety, and sustainability

College of Information Sciences and Technology
Joslenne Peña, M.S.; Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Computer Science, Macalester College.

College of The Liberal Arts
Hannah Furnas, M.A.; Ph.D.
Senior Research Science Manager, Meta

College of Medicine
Lawrence M. Mylin, Ph.D., Biological Chemistry
Professor of Biology, Messiah University

Ross and Carol Nese College of Nursing
Kimberly Fenstermacher, M.S.; Ph.D.
Assistant Dean of Nursing, Messiah University

Eberly College of Science
Alex Zhao, Ph.D., Statistics
Senior Data Scientist, BCG X, Boston Consulting Group

School of International Affairs
Paige Castellanos, Ph.D., Rural Sociology and International Agriculture and Development, Master of International Affairs
Senior Manager for Gender Justice and Inclusion, Oxfam America

Smeal College of Business
Jeffrey M. Middleton, MBA, B.S., Economics
Senior Director of Finance, Global Construction Brands Controller, Case New Holland Industrial, Inc.

Graduate and Professional Student Association (GPSA) Representative
Lawrence Miller, GPSA President
Kristen Reish, GPSA Vice President for External Affairs

Office of Graduate Educational Equity Programs (OGEEP) Representative
Keisha Oliver

Jennifer Theiss
Director of Alumni and External Relations

The GSAS Awards Committee plans the Graduate School Alumni Society (GSAS) Alumni Awards Program which recognizes outstanding Penn State graduate alumni for outstanding early career accomplishments, lifetime professional achievement and service to humanity.

Committee Members 2023-24:

• Jeff Middleton, Chair
• Merilee Anderson
• Jim Caltagirone
• Paige Castellanos
• Harriet Huell Lampkin
• Amy Thul
• Alex Zhao

The GSAS Alumni Outreach and Engagement Committee strives to engage more alumni with the Graduate School Alumni Society through fellowship and networking events and other programming. Activities include planning the annual Graduate School Alumni Tailgate, networking events, and providing messages for alumni communications.

Committee Members 2023-24:

• Kim Fenstermacher, Chair
• Jonathan U. Dougherty
• Kathy Hume
• David Kiser
• Jay Kovacs
• Joslenne Peña

The Professional Development Committee plans programs and events to boost the professional and career development of all graduate students at Penn State.

The committee features alumni at programs throughout the year to highlight careers in industry, academia, government, and non-academic sectors.

The annual Career Explorations Workshop provides graduate students with insights into diverse career paths and the opportunity to build their professional network with alumni. The committee also supports the annual Accelerate to Industry Immersion Week that provides an intensive week of programming for students seeking non-academic careers.

Committee Members 2023-24:

• Hannah Furnas, Chair
• Bimal Balakrishnan
• Ken Graham
• Sharon Melzer
• Matt Krott
• Cathy Rusinko
• Larry Mylin

The Executive Committee is comprised of the board officers and chairs of the committees. The Committee is responsible for the development and implementation of the Board’s strategic plan.

Executive Committee Members 2023-24:

• Kathy Hume (President)
• Bimal Balakrishnan (President-Elect)
• Jay Kovacs (Immediate Past-President)
• Hannah Furnas (Chair, Professional Development)
• Kim Fenstermacher (Chair, Alumni Outreach and Engagement)
• Jeff Middleton (Chair, Awards)

The Nominating Committee is responsible for ensuring the future leadership of the alumni society, establishing priorities for membership, and verifying that nominations adhere to recruitment criteria established by the society.

Nominating Committee Members 2023-24:

• Jay Kovacs (Chair, Immediate Past-President)
• Kathy Hume (President)
• Bimal Balakrishnan (President-Elect)