Life After MPS

LITA TIRAK MPS-1996

2010-12-02T09:16:00.000-08:00

Lita Tirak MPS-1996

Mercyhurst College

Erie, PA

BA Studio Art

College of William and Mary

MA American Studies

College of William and Mary

PhD candidate American Studies

At MPS, Lita was active in the visual arts and the International Baccalaureate program, receiving IB certificates in both Art and English. She fully participated in the creative arts that Mercyhurst offered, all of which influenced her artwork. After graduation, she pursued studies in studio art at Mercyhurst College and animation at Edinboro University of Pennsylvania. Following Lita's 2000 graduation from Mercyhurst College, she taught art classes for teenage students at Gannondale. In 2001, her professional development expanded to include museum work at George Eastman House: International Museum of Photography and Film in Rochester, NY. At the museum Lita spent four years working in the photography archives, assisting in the Conservation Department and researching for the exhibition Young America: The Daguerreotypes of Southworth and Hawes. She also spent three years performing research for the Development Department and the Administration Department. During this time, Lita continued practicing and exhibiting her own photographs. In 2008, she left the museum and matriculated to the American Studies graduate program at the College of William and Mary. There she acted as the assistant director of the Global Film Festival, co-curated a museum exhibit and presented numerous papers at symposiums. After receiving her MA, Lita continued as a PhD candidate specializing in 19th and 20th century visual culture. Visual culture consists of everything visual that is not part of the canon of art history, with an emphasis on race, gender, class and trans-national perspectives. She anticipates her dissertation will focus on the visual culture of x-rays. This course of study allows Lita to take advantage of her past work experiences as well as her own experiences as an artist.

"Mercyhurst Prep offered me a tremendous start on my professional and educational path...intense IB final examinations prepared me well for both my undergraduate and graduate work."

ALICIA BEKENY 2006

2010-03-09T14:48:00.000-08:00

Alicia Bekeny

University of Pittsburgh Pittsburgh PA

Major-Economics, Political Science Minor-French

Alicia is a recent grad of MPS, the valedictorian of the Class of 2006 and an IB diploma student. While all of this was going on she also managed to be an outstanding musician in the MPS orchestra and be honored as an All-Eastern musician for her performances on the violin. She was also a big part of the Speech and Debate Team's success. Alicia is now on the verge of finishing her degree at the University of Pittsburgh. There she has also continued to pursue her interest in music, participating in the University of Pittsburgh Orchestra and founding and performing in the university's Honor's College String Quartet. She has also organized a service organization of musicians. She is the Vice-President of the Undergraduate Economics Society, a founding member of the study abroad alumni network-PAW (Pitt Around the World), and an officer in the French Club.

Alicia had the opportunity to study abroad in Budapest, Hungary at Corvinus University, she received a Freeman Foundation Scholarship to study in China and Viet Nam and also spent time at Jagiellonian University in Krakow, Poland. Along with being well-travelled, Alicia has stayed rooted in the Mercy tradition of service. She has volunteered in numerous projects here in Erie, through GE. She organized a philanthropic project to benefit the Refugee Center in Pittsburgh, as well as doing service in Hungary.

Alicia credits Mercyhurst Prep with helping her develop as a student. "I honed a strong work ethic under the International Baccalaureate education program."

"Thanks in large part to my MPS education, I had a clear vision of where I could go with a work ethic and dedication...The Mercyhurst experience also prepared me for the real world by guiding me to embody the values of compassionate presence, justice, service and concern for the dignity of all people."

Alicia's concern with justice issues and interest in service has led her to consider further studies in law after graduation.

JOE ALLGEIER 1999

2010-01-25T13:00:00.000-08:00

Joe Allgeier 1999

Cleveland Institute of Art

Cleveland, OH

BFA Sculpture

Case Western Reserve University

Cleveland, OH

MA Art Education

While at Mercyhurst Prep, Joe was deeply involved in the visual arts as part of the IB-Art Seminar program. He also served as president of the National Art Honor Society and he was the Circle of Mercy Award winner for the Arts in his senior year. He continued to pursue his studies at the Cleveland Institute of Art, where he began to focus on sculpture in the traditional techniques of stone and wood. In his fourth year, Joe received the Consortium scholarship to study abroad. He spent a year at the Studio Arts Center International in Florence Italy. He began to explore combining wood and stone in his work at this time. After graduation, Joe continued his studies at Case Western Reserve. There he received his Master's in Art Education and began his teaching career. He has taught in high schools in North Carolina and New York and he has also served as a teacher in the Pennsylvania Governor's School of the Arts.

Joe currently resides in Rochester, NY where he shares a studio with his wife and produces works for private and public spaces around the country. You can see some of the beautiful and complex sculptures he has created on his website at http://www.finewoods.net/ . Joe continues to be active exhibiting his works and he also continues his art studies.

ANDREW STOREY 2004

2010-01-13T06:15:00.000-08:00

Andrew Storey 2004

College of Wooster
Wooster, OH

BA Chemistry

Indiana University
Bloomington, IN

Grad Student/Analytical Chemistry

The 2004 graduates of MPS were a talented group and Andrew is a great example of that. While at MPS, he was the captain of the Speech and Debate Team and an IB Diploma candidate. He developed his interest in chemistry as he was working towards his diploma.

He continued to explore the field at the College of Wooster. Along with chemistry, Andrew participated in club hockey, the Moot Court, and he served as Secretary and then Treasurer of Beta Kappa Phi. He also served as president of the school's Hans H. Jenny Investment Club, managing a 1.4 million dollar endowment for the college. Andrew's research at Wooster was environmentally oriented as he analyzed herbicides in food crops using advanced extraction methods and mass spectrometry. While still in college, Andrew had the opportunity to travel to Hungary to conduct research on climate change with Dr. Richard Bowden of Allegheny College. After graduation he worked for a year in Portland, Oregon for ZRT Laboratory using methods similar to those he worked with in Wooster, this time in relation to hormone analysis. Andrew then returned to grad school at Indiana University where he is creating methods to quantitate and analyze error in measurements done utilizing inductively coupled plasmas, including optical emission and mass spectrometry, some pretty serious science, by the sounds of it. he also keeps busy as an associate instructor, teaching in the laboratory at the university.

Andrew's experiences in speech and debate at MPS "...allowed me to thrive and have all kinds of unbelievable experiences." Andrew also believes that the IB was crucial to his development as a student. "Writing speed and ability were the things that IB helped with the most during college."

JAIME WARBURTON MPS-2000

2009-11-25T05:16:00.000-08:00

Jaime Warburton

Ithaca College Ithaca NY
BA Writing

Sarah Lawrence College Bronxville NY
MFA Writing

While at Mercyhurst Prep, Jaime was a "permanent fixture" on the stage and in the orchestra. However, this did not keep her from excelling in the classroom where she was busy earning an IB Diploma. Jaime continued this habit in college, where she majored in Writing, performed with a dance troupe and the flute ensemble, acted in several student film festival films and a sit-com pilot, while being on the Dean's List and in the Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society. All through college, Jaime worked as a tutor in the Writing Center, edited the school's literary magazine, Stillwater, and also worked with special needs children though a SonRise Program. After graduation she took some time to travel in Europe with some fellow MPS alums, eventually returning to academia and grad school at Sarah Lawrence College, where she studied with poets and writers like Vijay Seshadri and Matthea Harvey. She also worked as a research assistant for Arnold Krupat with his work on Native representation/literature. While at Sarah Lawrence, she began teaching at a two-year college in mid-town Manhattan, and then moved on to Concordia College.

After completing her MFA, she became an assistant professor at Ithaca College. Now in her third year there, Jaime has mentored the student literary magazine, guest-curated the school's reading series, and co-directed the biannual WomenSpeak conference. She is also a publishing poet and scholar.

"My years at MPS were, to me, examples of an ideal life: community, challenging inquiries, emphasis on self-expression through accomplishment in the arts." As a college professor, her experiences with IB have been such that she "loves to have students who have done IB...They are more prepared for college work by far than those who took AP exams."

CAITLIN WELSH MPS-1997

2009-11-12T06:10:00.000-08:00

Caitlin Welsh

University of Virginia

Charlottesville, VA

BA Foreign Affairs

Columbia University

New York, NY

MPA Advanced Policy and Economic Analysis

When Caitlin was at Mercyhurst, you could find her pretty much everywhere, doing all kinds of things, and that hasn't changed since she graduated. She left for the University of Virginia to study Foreign Affairs and in her "spare" time she rowed for the UVA Women's Rowing Team, was a Resident Advisor, Chairperson of the Community Service Committee of her Class Council, and a Lawn Resident in her fourth year. From there it was on to Washington DC, where she worked as a Legal Assistant doing research for Latham & Watkins LLP. Caitlin then spent two years in the Peace Corps as a Youth Development Volunteer in Morocco. She facilitated educational programs directed at women's rights, nutrition, HIV/AIDS, and Arabic literacy for women in her town, and she trained incoming Peace Corps volunteers in the Youth Development sector. After the Peace Corps, Caitlin returned to the US and attended Columbia University's School of International and Public Affairs. She received a fellowship and became a Teaching Assistant in the Master of Public Administration program. Between her first and second year at SIPA, she continued her work in Africa working for the FATE Foundation in Lagos, Nigeria.

Now Caitlin is working for a US Federal agency called the African Development Foundation. The agency provides grants for small and medium sized enterprises in twenty African countries. She works on grants administration in Washington DC and travels to the field to monitor projects and do inter-governmental work.

Caitlin is grateful that her MPS experience "taught me enough about the world outside of Erie to make me want to experience that world myself."

SCOTT GRIEBEL, Ph.D. MPS 1990

2009-11-05T11:11:00.001-08:00

Scott Griebel

Penn State University University Park, PA

BS Engineering

Northeastern University Boston, MA

MS Electrical Engineering

Harvard University Cambridge, MA

MS Electrical Engineering
Ph.D. Engineering Sciences

One of the talented and memorable "Class of 90", Scott went on to Penn State to pursue an Engineering degree, where he got involved in biomedical image processing. He continued his work in this field at Northeastern University, applying his engineering skills to analyzing heart health during operating room procedures. From there it was on to Harvard where his interest in heart "sounds" was redirected to speech. While at Harvard he was a Teaching Fellow and was honored with the Division of Engineering's Teaching Excellence Award. He also worked as a research assistant while at Harvard, focusing on multiple-microphone speech algorithms.

Scott has published several articles on his research and presented at numerous conferences. Since graduating from Harvard, he has served as a consultant for SparkNotes.com and Acoustic Magic. Currently he is a financial software programmer working to develop financial software for major financial institutions on Wall Street and around the world. In his "spare time" he keeps busy as a copy editor and columnist for REALbasic Developer Magazine, and he also creates iPhone applications for various clients. Scott recently endowed two scholarships at Mercyhurst Prep for science and math achievement.

"The school definitely had a feeling of being part of a family and that everyone, from students to teachers, seemed to be genuinely caring and supportive...I think the principles and generosity that I experienced there have shaped me as a person in my personal and professional life."

ELLEN FISHER MPS-2005

2009-11-04T13:25:00.001-08:00

Ellen Fisher

Seton Hill University
Greensburg, PA

BS Dietetics/ Nutrition

One of the gifted class of 2005, an active member of the theater and dance company, Ellen was also in NHS and served as a student ambassador. She left MPS to pursue studies in Dietetics and Nutrition. While at Seton Hill, she was a Dean's List student and a member of the Alpha Lambda Delta Honor Society. She was also a founding member and Secretary of the Dietetics Club for two years. Ellen received several scholarships upon entering Seton Hill due to her involvement in activities and her strong academic background from MPS, including the Aloysia Lowe Scholarship, leadership scholarships, Rising Star Scholarships and community service scholarships. She also received 15 credits from Seton Hill for her work in the International Baccalaureate while at Mercyhurst Prep.

"Mercyhurst definitely prepared me for the strong science and medical field I am in. I owe a great deal of thanks to all departments at MPS as Seton Hill is a liberal arts university requiring me to take courses in all fields of study, including art, science, math English, history and religion, all of which I had a strong background from MPS."

One week after graduation, Ellen began work as a clinical dietitian in a long term care facility in the Pittsburgh area and is in the process of becoming a registered and licensed dietitian in the state of Pennsylvania.

CAPTAIN ANDREW DULIN MPS-2000

2009-10-28T05:51:00.001-07:00

Andy Dulin

United States Air Force Academy Colorado Springs, CO

BS Geo-Politics

At Mercyhurst Prep, Andy was one of the outstanding players on the soccer team and a team leader. He was one of those students who was always positive and always willing to go the extra distance. He took those talents with him when he left and made the most of them at the Air Force Academy. There he majored in Geo-Politics, with a minor in French and continued his soccer career on the Academy's soccer team.

After being commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant at the end of his four years at the Academy, Andrew attended the USAF Intelligence School in San Angelo, Texas as well as the Air and Space Basic Course. He was then assigned to the 4th Airlift Squadron at McChord Air Force Base in Washington. Following this he was deployed to Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates. There he served as liaison to the Italian Air Force. In 2007 he was deployed to Incirlik Air Base in Adana, Turkey. There he supported C-17 and C-130 cargo planes and was intelligence liaison to the Royal Air Force of Great Britain as well as the Turkish Air Force. Now a captain, Andy is working in the Counter-Tactics Office at Pope Air Force Base in Fayetteville, NC.

LAUREN HIEGEL MPS-2001

2009-10-27T06:26:00.000-07:00

Lauren Hiegel

Penn State University Behrend College

BS Marketing

While at MPS, Lauren was involved in a wide variety of activities, from the soccer field and student government, to the student newspaper, Shorelines. All of this was done with a positive attitude. Recognized by her classmates in the Senior Superlatives as "The Most Friendly", it was a rare thing to catch her without a smile on her face or a kind word.

At Behrend, Lauren pursued a Marketing degree. She took part in the American Marketing Association, getting experience in networking and learning about opportunities in the field. She served as the organization's Vice-President for a year. She also interned with the SeaWolves getting experience in promotions. She had the opportunity in college to travel to Europe and came away feeling that it was a formative experience for her.

After college Lauren worked in Washington DC for GEICO Insurance as a recruiter, organizing on-campus recruiting events, interviewing job candidates and conducting informational presentations at conferences. Now she is with Bank of America in Charlotte, NC in Human Resources. Working in university relations, Lauren now helps identify talent, creates strategies to achieve target hires and organizes campus recruiting events around the country.

In keeping with her Mercyhurst Prep roots, Lauren spends a lot of time volunteering with Bank of America's community service programs, including working with the Humane Society and on community blood drives.

For Lauren, her experiences at Mercyhurst Prep..."allowed me to make long lasting relationships and become a more well-rounded and positive individual."

"MPS provides so many options to get involved and help find what you love, which will then help in your future success and happiness."

NICKY BELL MPS 2008

2009-10-13T06:14:00.001-07:00

NICKY BELL

College of William and Mary

Williamsburg VA

International Relations

An outstanding member of the MPS Debate team, it is no surprise that as a student at William and Mary, Nicky has participated in the American Parliamentary Debate Association, competing against teams from around the country and qualifying for the national tournament as a freshman. Along with his debate experiences, he was elected as vice-president of the Residence Hall Association for his sophomore year after being honored as Representative of the Year as a freshman. Nicky also serves as a peer reviewer for articles submitted to the Monitor, the journal of international relations at the college. He works as a writing consultant in the Writing Resources Center. Last year he was inducted into the Alpha Lambda Delta and Phi Eta Sigma Honor Societies, and was one of 25 sophomores at the school selected for the Student Leadership Foundation. Nicky spent part of his spring break working with a Teach for America project in Charlotte, NC. As a recipient of a Monroe Scholarship from William and Mary, Nicky traveled to Spain last summer where he spent a week conducting interviews and visiting memorials to the Madrid train bombings in preparation for writing a paper on the relationship between the memorials and Spanish identity. Also during the summer, he worked as a research assistant for Professor Larry Evans, focusing on the Congressional Whip Count Project. he will present a paper with Prof. Evans at the Western Political Science Conference in April based on this work.

"Although I have only been in college for a year, I can already tell that the education I received at MPS has been instrumental in helping me achieve the success I have over the past year. The teachers at Mercyhurst challenged me to think critically about everything they presented me, and that is exactly the skill that college professors look for. Not only has this put me a step ahead of my peers in adjusting to the rigors of a college curriculum, but it has also created so many opportunities for me."

"I am very glad that I did the IB Diploma at MPS. The program taught me the skills I need to be a successful student at a competitive university...I found that my practice with IB, which forced me to go beyond superficial analysis...was allowing me to produce high quality papers. All of the other IB students I've met from across the US and the rest of the world had the same experience. However, I will say that speaking with other IB students has made me realize just how good the IB program at Mercyhurst really is."

RENAE ZINGELEWICZ(STODDARD) MPS-1990

2009-10-08T05:37:00.001-07:00

RENAE ZINGELEWICZ (STODDARD)

Allegheny College
Meadville, PA

BA English/Secondary Teaching Certificate

Theater has always been a passion of Renae's. The hours spent on stage at MPS prepared her for a minor in Communication Arts-Theater at Allegheny College, while majoring in English. Actively involved in almost every production in her four years at college, she did everything from acting to stage managing. Even her work study job was at the theater, preparing props for performances. She was honored as an outstanding contributor to the Theater Arts in her senior year. A play she wrote for a course was selected for production and she had the opportunity to direct her own work, which was one of the most thrilling events in her college career. Her experiences on the volleyball court at MPS also led her to participate on the collegiate level as a freshman.

Currently, Renae works for Erie Insurance as a Liability Adjuster. She investigates motor vehicle accidents to determine liability and works with injured parties on their claims. Married and the mother of two children, she still finds time occasionally to perform with the local theater.

"I still, all these years later, feel very connected to the MPS community. Erie Insurance has a huge sense of service and community and MPS definitely prepared me for that...Giving back to the community and being taught the sense of commitment and responsibility was a great foundation for the customer service that I try to provide every day."

COLLEEN MATTIS MPS-2005

2009-09-24T07:17:00.000-07:00

COLLEEN MATTIS

Savannah College of Art and Design-2009

Savannah, GA

BFA-Art History

While at Mercyhurst Prep, Colleen excelled in photography, was a member of NAHS and was a recipient of the Creative Arts Award and the Excellence in Photography Award. With a desire to continue in the arts, she attended Savannah College of Art and Design. She graduated Cum Laude in 2009 with a degree in Art History.

A Photography major in her first two years, she switched to Art History when the college transitioned from traditional photography to digital. While at SCAD, she took advantage of internships that involved helping curate art exhibitions, where her responsibilities included installation, publicity, and acting as docent at receptions. She also had the opportunity to meet artists and professionals of note in the art world, including Art Critic Robert Hughes and Egyptologist Zahi Hawass.

Colleen received 15 credit hours, a full semester's worth, for her participation in IB. "My art classes at MPS gave me a big head start over many of the other incoming students at SCAD. There is no doubt in my mind that the education I received at MPS set me up for my great success at Savannah College of Art and Design. Not only was I encouraged in high school to pursue my passion for art, but I was prepared to do so."

Colleen is currently pursuing a career in writing and art criticism, while continuing to create art with her camera.

MEAGAN BIELANIN 2004

2009-09-23T12:53:00.001-07:00

MEAGAN BIELANIN

Penn State University, The Behrend College

BA English Literature/Political Science

Meagan left the basketball court and classrooms of MPS behind and went to Penn State Behrend where she continued her basketball career and her excellence in the classroom. A Dean's List student every semester, she graduated with distinction. While at Behrend, she served as an undergraduate teaching assistant, and also volunteered for Erie's Voting Department during elections, working with the new voting machines. She served as a basketball camp counselor at Behrend and was an assistant coach for the Erie Saints Basketball Organization for two seasons. She had the opportunity to study abroad while at Behrend, spending a summer in London at the University of Northampton and while there she took time to travel to Italy and France. An experience she "wouldn't trade for the world".

Currently Meagan is in Law School at Case Western University in the JD program. During the summer she did legal work for the City of Cleveland's Building and Housing Department. She lives in Cleveland Heights and is looking for an assistant coaching job, to keep her hand in basketball.

Meagan credits Mercyhurst Prep and the IB program for preparing her to excel at Behrend. "Because of my great teachers in the program at MPS", she pursued a major in English Lit. and Political Science with a minor in International Studies. She received nearly a semester of credit for her IB work.

HEATHER HERTEL 1991

2009-09-22T11:33:00.000-07:00

HEATHER HERTEL

Syracuse University Edinboro University

Syracuse, NY Edinboro, PA

BFA Painting MFA Painting

MS Art Education

Heather was one of the pioneer students in the IB Art Seminar class at MPS and she left to continue studying art at Syracuse. She graduated Magna Cum Laude and was a Rhodes Scholar nominee for the university. She continued her education at Syracuse receiving an MS in Art Education in 1998. Heather then returned to Erie to work on an MFA at Edinboro, which she completed in 2003. She also took the opportunity to study abroad at Santa Repararta International School in Florence, Italy.

Heather has been an active exhibitor of work throughout her career, with solo shows in Erie, Edinboro, Meadville, and Pittsburgh. She has participated in numerous juried exhibitions across the country, from California to Virginia. Her painted sculpture "Alo" can be see in front of the Regional Cancer Center in Erie, PA.

She has also been awarded a full fellowship from Virginia Center for the Creative Arts and a grant for a residency at the Vermont Studio Center. She organized the NPAA exhibit at the Lucky Gallery in New York City and has also directed collaborative projects with students and faculty from Slippery Rock University and University of Pittsburgh.

After teaching at Edinboro University and Mercyhurst College, Heather recently became an Assistant Professor of Art at Slippery Rock University and she continues to paint, draw and do collaborative works, making beautiful things in general.