UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Penn State doctoral alumni celebrating their 10th, 25th and 50th anniversary of receiving a doctorate returned to University Park for the Graduate School’s annual Doctoral Alumni Recognition Luncheon in Kern Graduate Building on March 19. The 14 honorees included six doctoral alumni observing their 10-year anniversary, two commemorating their 25-year anniversary, and six who merited special distinction by joining more than 3,000 doctoral alumni who have been recognized over the years as 50th anniversary celebrants.
Speakers at the ceremony included Daniel J. West Jr., past president, Graduate School Alumni Society; Paul Clifford, chief executive officer, Penn State Alumni Association; Kevin R. Steele, president, Penn State Alumni Association; and Regina Vasilatos-Younken, vice provost for Graduate Education and dean of the Graduate School.
“The achievements of our alumni are sources of inspiration and pride for our current graduate scholars and the entire Penn State community. Their successes are an enduring testament to the powerful role graduate education plays in preparing individuals who have contributed many of the innovations and discoveries that have fueled the nation’s economic, cultural, and civic success for decades,” said Vasilatos-Younken.
The doctoral alumni honored at the recognition luncheon are:
10th-year anniversary
- Erik S. Connors, information sciences and technology
- Jyotsna Kasturi, computer science and engineering
- Adetokunbo B. Oluwole, health policy and administration
- Barbara Ann Scaccia Senapedis, workforce education and development
- Riza Ulker, curriculum and instruction
- Lisa D. Weaver, higher education
25th-year anniversary
- Amit Bandyopadhyay, civil engineering
- Dennis M. Zajac, psychology
50th-year anniversary
- Vishnu S. Avva, engineering mechanics
- Mary W. Barnes, chemistry
- William J. Douglas, engineering mechanics
- Eugene J. Greskovich, chemical engineering
- James K. Hershberger, educational administration
- Nelson S. Loftus Jr., agronomy