Conferences
CHC or Hogwarts?
In an effort to spread the word about the Harry Potter Conference held at CHC in October as part of Harry Potter Weekend, and to talk about Chestnut Hill College in general, two professors recently participated in Comic Con at the Pennsylvania Convention Center in Center City.
From May 7 – 10, Karen Wendling, Ph.D. ’03, assistant professor of chemistry, and Patrick McCauley, Ph.D., assistant professor of religious studies, shared information, not only about the conference, but also about CHC Admissions, the Interdisciplinary Honors Program, Alumni Relations and McCauley’s book (“Into the Pensieve: The Philosophy and Mythology of Harry Potter”) coming in October.
“In a convention full of vendors trying to sell various goods, it was refreshing for passersby to be invited to free events — the Conference, Festival and the Brotherly Love Cup Quidditch Tournament — and to enter a free raffle,” says Wendling. “Everyone we talked to was impressed with the beautiful photos of Chestnut Hill College looking much like Hogwarts and the commitment to keeping the Harry Potter Conference truly academic.”
According to McCauley, CHC was the only college or university represented at the conference — because of the Harry Potter Conference. Comic Con drew more than 100,000 visitors.
Current students Jessica Hobel and Briana Charlton, and Amanda Finlaw, Class of 2015, helped staff the booth, as did Fran Vorsky, acting director of alumni relations, (who donated Harry Potter scarves and CHC T-shirts for the raffle) and Meg Cranney, assistant director of student activities, (who donated a Quidditch blanket and T-shirt.)
Scholarships
A First for Students in SCPS
When she was a student in the School of Continuing & Professional Studies, Carole Christ ’06 was touched as she witnessed the financial struggles of some of her classmates. Recently, Carole and her husband, Joe, decided that they wanted to do something to help, and have worked with the Office of Institutional Advancement to establish a scholarship — named in honor of their mothers. The award of $15,000 will pay partial tuition for one SCPS student for one year.
The Teresa Christ and Irene Smith-Schneider Scholarship is the first scholarship designated specifically to benefit a student enrolled in the School of Continuing & Professional Studies. The school’s accelerated program offers bachelor’s and associate’s degrees in 12 majors, plus a certificate program in Digital Forensics. Courses are scheduled in the evenings and on weekends in an 8-week format.
To qualify for the scholarship, candidates must meet the following criteria: have achieved “senior status” (by successfully completing 84 credits; have earned a minimum grade point average of 3.0; qualify for financial aid; and have been continuously enrolled in classes. Preference will be given to a full-time student and the scholarship will be awarded for the first time in the fall 2015 semester.
Application materials must be submitted to the School of Continuing & Professional Studies by July 15.
For more information, contact Elaine R. Green, Ed.D., dean of the School of Continuing & Professional Studies at green@chc.edu or 215-248-7172.
Student News
CHC Student-Athletes Commit to Academic Success
A Record 94 Students Earn a Spot on Spring 2015 Athletic Academic Honor Roll.
The College is proud to recognize and honor 94 students, who through their hard work and commitment to academic success, have achieved a GPA of 3.5 or better, earning a place on the Spring 2015 Athletic Academic Honor Roll.
In 2010, Chestnut Hill College hired Nicki Lockhart to fill the position of Associate Director of Athletics for Academic Success and Community Engagement. This was also the first year in which the College developed the Athletic Academic Honor Roll. In the spring 2010 semester, 45 students were recognized with distinction as having achieved a GPA of 3.5 or better.
Since then, CHC student-athletes have continued to climb the academic ranks, placing record numbers of students on the Honor Roll in each of the past two years, including 94 in 2015. Among these 41, which bested last year’s total of 75, 16 earned a GPA of 4.0, also an increase from last year.
Leading the way was the soccer program, both men’s and women’s, as they placed a total of 29 students (17 from the women’s team, 12 from the men’s) on the Honor Roll. The women’s tennis team, with the lowest individual GPA being a 3.55, placed all eight members of the team on the Honor Roll.
Some of the other impressive numbers from this year’s athletics program include:
- 3.17 – the spring semester GPA among athletes, which is the highest it has ever been
- 3.08 – the cumulative GPA for the 2014-15 academic year
- 3.84 – the GPA for the women’s tennis team, the highest average of all programs
- 3.28 – the GPA for the men’s track and field team, the highest male average of all programs
The CHC student-athletes, in the truest sense of the word, exemplify what it means to be Division II athletes. Through their passion, commitment, scholarship, service and sportsmanship, they are leaders both in the classroom, on the fields and on the courts.
- Marilee Gallagher '14
CHC Students Join SEPCHE Honors Conference
On March 28, students from Chestnut Hill College took part in the 17th Annual Southeastern Pennsylvania Consortium for Higher Education (SEPCHE) Honors Conference, at Immaculata University.
SEPCHE was formed in 1993 to unite eight schools in the Greater Philadelphia region to “collaborate to improve the quality and efficiency of academic programming, student access, faculty development, institutional operations and community outreach, through a range of shared activities, services, technology and information,” according to its website.
One of these shared activities is the Honors Conference, in which 25 Chestnut Hill College students participated this year. Of the submissions, 24 students presented academic papers and one student, Vernon Jeffries ’15, submitted an original piece of art.
“My artwork, titled ‘The Lighthouse,’ contains a series of imagery and symbolism that illustrate life on the Autism Spectrum. The lighthouse is isolated and surrounded by storms; however it continues to stand strong as it shines its light. It is a message of hope and perseverance,” says Jeffries, an education major and member of the College’s organization, Council for Exceptional Children.
In addition to the student presentations, Chestnut Hill faculty also were involved in the conference. Teri Weideman-Rouse, Ph.D., assistant professor of education; Lauren Barrow, Ph.D., assistant professor of criminal justice; Kathleen Duffy, SSJ, Ph.D., professor of physics and coordinator of the Interdisciplinary Honors Program; and Sheldon Miller, Ph.D., associate professor of chemistry; and William Lauinger, Ph.D., assistant professor of philosophy, all facilitated academic sessions.
—Marilee Gallagher ’14
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Presentations
Scott Browning, Ph.D., ABPP, professor of professional psychology, will make a presentation at the American Family Therapy Academy (AFTA) conference in Portland, Ore., on June 5. He will co-present with Patricia Papernow, Ed.D. (who has a private practice in Massachusetts), on Treating Stepfamilies. Papernow and Browning have co-taught a training on treating stepfamilies for 20 years. This presentation allows them to examine two related, but essentially different, approaches to treating stepfamilies.
Browning also will present a symposium at the June conference of the Society of Psychotherapy Integration in Baltimore. Two doctoral students, Trish Gratson and Janee Stevenson will co-present on Contemporary Families with Browning.
Their presentation links the research on three family types and the clinical interventions that flow from the research. The three types are: Families on the Autism Spectrum, LGBQT+ Families and Interracial Families. Kevin McCarthy, Ph.D., assistant professor of psychology, is the discussant for the presentation.