Archive for January, 2007

Scholar alumna to compete for Miss America

UPDATE: Watch Monday night at 8PM on Country Music Television.


Penn State alumna to compete for Miss America title
Amazing. How many other universities can say that their top students not only are Goldwaters, Rhodes, Marshall, and other scholarship winners, but also in the running for Miss America?

Miss Pennsylvania Emily M. Wills is a 2006 graduate of the Schreyer Honors College, holding a bachelor’s degree in psychology from the College of the Liberal Arts.

After winning the Miss Penn State title as a freshman, Wills received the usual congratulatory phone messages from friends and family on her cell phone. She also received an unexpected, but much-appreciated message that began, “Hello, this is Graham Spanier …”

“For the president of a Big Ten university to take time out of his schedule to call, that just threw me,” said Wills.

“Being named Miss Penn State made me step outside my comfort zone. It really does open a lot of doors and helped me to think on my feet and to be able to articulate,” Wills continued. It also opened doors to opportunities she otherwise would not have had. For example, she sang the national anthem at a football banquet with Joe Paterno on one side and President Spanier on the other. “JoePa came in and gave me a hug,” Wills said.

In addition to serving as Miss Penn State, Wills was:

– Schreyer Honors College student;

– a four-year member of the Penn State Dance Team;

– the College of the Liberal Arts scholarship winner for both 2003 and 2004;

– winner of the Asbury Award for Outstanding Leadership, Community Service and Promotion of Diversity; and

– named a Promise Fellow, part of the America’s Promise initiative.

Congratulations to Emily and best of luck!

(Via Penn State Live.)

Miss Pennsylvania

Just a note (from Donna Meyer) to share that Scholar alumna Emily Wills ‘06 Lib will be competing for the title of Miss America 2007 in Las Vegas on January 29th. Miss America (not to be confused with Donald Trump’s Miss USA) is a non-profit scholarship organization for females aged 18-24. The Miss America finals will be televised live on January 29 at 8/7 pm central on the Country Music Network (CMT). In addition, there is a two-hour documentary of the 52 contestants, which will air January 27 at 9 p.m. eastern.

The following links are stories about Emily and her journey:
http://live.psu.edu/story/18758
http://live.psu.edu/story/21741

SHCTube

We are on YouTube!


The P.A.W.S. Leadership Jumpstart Team (subject of our penultimate podcast) has a video as well!

His Hope Our Responsibility

Today we remember MLK and his great contributions to our society and world. I was honored to be asked to speak at the PSU service today.
My remarks are below. After having spent the last several weeks reading Dr. King’s sermons I am keenly aware of how limited and poor my own sermons and speeches are. His work remains for us to continue; there is still much to be done.

“Go and do likewise.”
It is truly an honor to be here with you today. I grew up in the wake of the civil rights movement in intergrated schools in the suburbs of DC. We lived just a scant 30 miles from where Dr. King and so many others marched on the nation’s capital and made their stand for the rights of all men and women. Mine was a middle class and privileged childhood; fortunately there were many people of color in my school and situation as well. It would not be until I was in junior high and high school that I would realize that this was not the norm. But it was in college that I really began to learn about Dr. King and the message that he carried to this country and our world.

Continue reading ‘His Hope Our Responsibility’

Scholar on Apprentice

Muna Heaven is not just a Penn State grad, she is an SHC grad!
Jamaican, Muna Heaven, on Trump’s ‘Apprentice’ (Jamaica)


(Photo courtesy of NBC)
Muna Heaven, a 28-year-old Jamaican-born attorney from New Jersey has been named among the eighteen candidates for the sixth edition of Donald Trump NBC reality show, ‘The Apprentice. Muna has studied abroad in France, Spain and Belgium, and speaks fluently in English, Spanish and French. She is an accomplished equestrian and has competed internationally in equestrian show jumping in Jamaica, Panama, Guatemala, France and Canada. She currently works for a law firm in New York that litigates family law matters. Heaven is graduate of Penn State University and the McGill University Faculty of Law, where she earned degrees in French, biology and common law and civil law. 

(Via Jamaicans.com.)

MLK, Jr. – “What did you do for others?”

Reminder! Today Monday January 15th is the Day!

I am humbled to have been invited to speak at PSU’s MLK Day Peace Service. MLK’s motif of the Jericho Road had been brought to my attention by Bishop Charles Jenkins of EDOLA and I will speak from Luke 10 and MLK’s interpretation of that passage. In reading I came across this sermon and this appropriate reminder that it is not about the accolades, but about “doing the right thing.” (This is a transcript of the sermon so the words in () are of the audience’s response.)

Oh, there will be a day, the question won’t be, “How many awards did you get in life?” Not that day. (Yeah) It won’t be, “How popular were you in your social setting?” That won’t be the question that day. (Yeah) It will not ask how many degrees you’ve been able to get. (All right) The question that day will not be concerned with whether you are a “Ph.D.” or a “no D.” (That’s right) It will not be concerned with whether you went to Morehouse or whether you went to “No House.” (Yes) The question that day will not be, “How beautiful is your house?” (That’s right) The question that day will not be, “How much money did you accumulate? How much did you have in stocks and bonds?” The question that day will not be, “What kind of automobile did you have?” On that day the question will be, “What did you do for others?” (That’s right)

Scholar on TV

Scholar Jordan Lane was a member of this panel on Channel 3 on Thursday:

Common Ground Lobby Talks
Muslims in America
Thursday, January 11, 9:00pm
CHANNEL 3 (WPSX)
A forum on challenges facing Muslims in the U.S.

It is now available online here.

HOINA Video

Produced by Scholar Liz Kernion, this video offers the sights and sounds and first hand-experiences of Scholars participating in the HOINA (Homes of
the Indian Nations)
program in Southern India this past summer. Great background music!

For more information about the HOINA program see this page.

NYTimes Scholar

We already noted Ashley’s “Lunch with Mimi” in our first Update Newsletter of this year, but I also just came across her citation as a NYTimes Scholar!

Ashley Houston, a top student at Brooklyn College Academy, was dubbed “The Writing Machine” by her family soon after she irst picked up a pen. Her mother, whom Ashley describes as “the strongest woman I knew,” died during high school, a loss that inspired Ashley “to work hard and make her proud.” Ashley’s greatest accomplishmen is her play, “Double Crossed,” which has been performed by drama students at Brooklyn College. She plans to major in psychology at Penn State University Honors College.

Student Expectations

collegewebeditor.com is a website for and by people who run websites for higher education. This post (from October, it is being reposted as part of the traditional “best of” lists at the end/beginning of the year) has some interesting results from a survey about *prospective* student’s expectations. Do these expectations match those of you, my faithful reader? Leave a comment and let me know!

Surveys & Metrics • Good TipsOct 26, 2006 03:15 pm
Top 15 Features to Recruit Prospective Students with Your College Website
As I announced in the previous post, Noel-Levitz has just released its latest report about the E-Expectations of the High School Class of 2007.

Not only is this report full of interesting data on how high school students use the Web and other new technologies, but it also provides you with a very handy to-do list for your Web team, i.e. what prospective college-bound students expect to be able to do on your university or college website:

1. Complete a financial aid estimator form (88%)
2. Complete a tuition cost calculator form (83%)
3. Complete an admissions application online (81%)
4. Request a campus visit by completing a form (81%)
5. Exchange instant messages with an admissions counselor or student worker (72%)
6. Complete a form to RSVP for a campus event (72%)
7. Inquire online (70%)
8. Read profi les of faculty (64%)
9. E-mail a faculty member (64%)
1

(Via .)