From Bousson to Budapest: Student-Faculty Research
by Linda DeMeritt
Dean of the College

This summer, Allegheny students were scattered throughout the world conducting research with faculty at a variety of educational institutions or field locations. Laura Nagel '07 and Anna Bartosiewicz '06 helped Professor Rich Bowden conduct research at Allegheny's Bousson Experimental Forest, the Harvard Forest in Massachusetts, and the Sikfokut Forest near Budapest, Hungary. Anthony Paravati '06 was at Dartmouth Medical School participating in a study on Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS). Other students traveled with faculty to such places as Alaska, Costa Rica, and Montana, where they conducted research on salamanders, volcanoes, or bird life.

In addition, many students stayed on campus to engage in original research in the lab. Clarissa Donnell '05 worked with Professor Brandi Baros on mutations in the bacterial virus known as Hong Kong 97. Suzanne Young '05 and Seth Wilmore '06 assisted Professor Caryl Waggett on a pilot study designed to determine the extent of lead exposure in the region and to identify future collaborative research efforts with community groups and health professionals. Three students—Annie Watson '07, Jill Trizna '06, and Melanie Gasper '06—worked in Professor Glen Wurst's lab on projects having to do with DNA sequences.

One of the distinguishing characteristics of an Allegheny education is the opportunity for students to engage in original research under the direction of a faculty member. This emphasis is reflected in the College's strategic plan, Tradition & Transformation, which states that we strive to be known for "individualized student research in partnership with faculty, including the distinctive senior comprehensive project."

Opportunity to gain active, hands-on research experience serves as one of our most effective recruitment tools for talented undergraduates, and retention increases when students become engaged and gain ownership of their education. Such collaboration enhances communication skills, creativity, and analytical thinking, serving as fundamental preparation for entry into graduate studies or a career. Furthermore, undergraduate collaborative work frequently advances faculty research programs and may result in conference presentations or publication, thus playing a pivotal role in faculty recruitment and retention.

We face a challenge, however, in funding these invaluable experiences for our students. While faculty have been highly successful in obtaining grants, with support recently from more than eighteen state and federal agencies, external funding is always limited and variable from year to year. Currently, we rely heavily on gifts from alumni, especially the Shanbrom and Long funds. This past academic year these funds, together with a grant from the Wells Foundation, provided more than $50,000 to support student-faculty collaborative research.

To meet current and future demand from students and faculty for collaborative research, we need to find sustainable, preferably endowed, funding sources. We hope we can rely on your help as we continue to send our students to such places as the Bousson Experimental Forest—and Budapest. These regional, national, and even international research projects have the power to transform our students' educational experience at Allegheny, as well as their future lives.

"Faculty have access to funds that support some areas of research, but it is often impossible to get support for innovative teaching or other student-centered programs that enrich the learning experience in and beyond the classroom. I had been fortunate to have had grants from outside sources for some of my research, but I am most grateful for the support I received from the Demmler Fund here at Allegheny. It enabled me to teach organic chemistry in an entirely different manner—i.e., by the Workshop Method. It allowed me to pay student workshop leaders, who quickly became the indispensable center of the process. The extent of the success of this effort was a delightful surprise to us all, and it continues today under the direction of Professor Shaun Murphree."

--Professor Emeritus of Chemistry Ed Walsh

Not Having to Ask If I Could Afford College? Priceless.
by Erin Brady '04

My father jokingly calls my scholarships the "buy two years, get two free" program, but this generous assessment does not even include the numerous grants and the educational stipend I received from my term as an AmeriCorps Bonner Leader or my loans. My family and I might joke about my financial aid, but the impact my Trustee Scholarship and other endowed scholarships has had on our lives is priceless.

I was raised in a solidly middle-class family, yet neither of my parents attended college, which in my neighborhood in Pittsburgh was not an uncommon occurrence. As I grew older I knew that my parents pinched pennies every now and again. Still, going to college was something I was told I was destined for. I never had to ask, "How will I pay to get there?" But when the college search began, I was shocked by the cost of sending one child, let alone two (I have a little sister), to college.

Then began the onslaught of financial aid seminars and books with quirky, witty titles playing on every middle-class family's fears that their child might not be smart enough or have SAT scores good enough (because they couldn't afford that fancy prep course on the weekends)—or they might just be a little "too rich" to qualify for that grant. My family fell victim to this monsoon, but despite all the tense conversations about the relative prices of my first-choice colleges and universities, common sense won out and I sent my deposit to the college yonder on the hill.

As financial aid information and scholarship letters arrived, I remember thinking "Allegheny must really want me to go there." What also arrived with those letters was peace of mind. I received the knowledge that my children wouldn't be paying off my student loans. My parents found reassurance that there was hope for my little sister and that parents who hadn't gone to college can navigate the sometimes overwhelming sea of financial aid information. Mostly, though, we knew that I would be privileged enough to receive a challenging, engaging liberal arts education.

What my scholarships at Allegheny gave me was the opportunity to flourish in the freedom that only security can allow. If you would ask me today, I would, if given the chance to do it over, do everything the same way again. I would come to Allegheny College in a heartbeat. As I reflect on my time at Allegheny, I know I have developed into an intelligent, assertive woman, scholar, and leader because I was given so many opportunities through the many generous donations of alumni and friends of the College—men and women I may never meet but to whom I will always be grateful.

Skattum Challenge
Watch Your Gifts Continue to Grow in Year Three!

Thanks to the generosity of alumni, parents, and friends, the first two years of the Skattum Challenge—through which Dag '84 and Julie Grosjean '85 Skattum have matched gifts to the Annual Fund—have been extraordinarily successful. In this final year of the challenge, the Skattums want to inspire multi-year pledges to the Annual Fund, which also supports the College's fund-raising campaign, Tradition & Transformation. Criteria for the final year of the challenge are as follows:

* All new three-year pledges to the Annual Fund are eligible.

* If you pledge the same amount for all three years, the Skattums will give an extra $100 to the Annual Fund.

* If you pledge increasing amounts during the three years, the Skattums will give an extra $300 to the Annual Fund ($100 for each year).

The Skattums are reaching out to alumni in other ways as well. On May 13 Allegheny had its first-ever alumni event in London, which drew Gators from all over Europe to a cocktail reception at Dag and Julie's home. President Richard Cook and his wife, Terry Lahti—who joined Dag, Julie, and other alumni for the event—report that it was a wonderful evening. The event was such a success that those who were able to attend have already begun talking about getting together for a similar event next year.

Also attending were Vincent Altamura '78, Faith Lidle Skattum '56, David Kent '79, Flor Nehmad Kent, Michael Wayne Anderson '81, Mary Anderson, Craig Rinker '94, Elo Kuldkepp, Jan Peter Wyland, Kyle Gillman '82, Brette Rupert Gillman '84, Charlie Howe '05, Mark Carnegie Brown, Amy Karhu '88, Pamela Zulick '03, Nicole Caves '03, Thomas Held '83, Julia Pfeiffer Harrington '80, Etsuri Motoyoshi '90, Nancy Drucker, and Kalee Talvitie-Brown '87.

If you couldn't take part in the Skattum cocktail reception, don't despair—you can still enjoy the Skattums' hospitality by taking advantage of their offer to make your new three-year pledge grow.

How Does Allegheny's Endowment Stack Up—Student by Student?

Allegheny excels in more ways than we can count. For one, the National Survey of Student Engagement ranked Allegheny in the top 2 percent of all colleges surveyed for level of academic challenge. For another, we have the top athletic program in western Pennsylvania—and the best athletic program, sport by sport, of any institution in the NCAC. High marks in academics and athletics? What more could a college want?

While we outshine our peer schools in many areas, one area in which we lag behind is the size of our endowment—or permanently invested capital—which provides permanent support for the College's operating expenses, including academic programs, scholarships, and our physical plant. Here's how our endowment in 2003 (per student) stacked up against the endowment per student at some of our peer schools:

Hamilton College $220,556
Union College: $115,215
Bucknell University: $100,880
Bates College: $91,255
Kenyon College: $80,526
Gettysburg College: $74,212
Dickinson College: $70,538
Connecticut College: $67,994
Washington & Jefferson: $60,445
Ohio Wesleyan University: $59,613
Hiram College: $55,092
Allegheny College: $54,689
Hope College: $38,356
Muhlenberg College: $30,973

Your gift to the endowment makes a difference to every Allegheny student. For more information on how you can give to this critical area of need, please contact us: Office of Development and Alumni Affairs, Allegheny College, 520 N. Main St., Meadville, PA 16335; 814-332-2364; campaign@allegheny.edu. Or visit us on the Web: www.allegheny.edu/campaign.

10 Things You Can Do Now to Leave a Legacy

1. Prepare a will. Only 50 percent of those who pass away have one. Without a will, your belongings may not be distributed as you would have wished.
2. Leave a gift for Allegheny in your will. Fewer than 6 percent of American households include nonprofits in an estate plan.
3. Consider using assets for your charitable gift. These include but aren't limited to: stocks, bonds, CDs, and real estate. Such gifts may even provide tax savings.
4. Fund a life income gift with Allegheny. It can provide you with an annual income while providing the College with a gift.
5. Name Allegheny as the beneficiary of your pension plan or IRA.
6. Purchase a life insurance policy naming the College as the beneficiary.
7. Name Allegheny as the beneficiary of an existing life insurance policy.
8. Remember loved ones with memorial gifts.
9. Encourage family and friends to leave gifts to nonprofits in their wills.
10. Ask your financial advisor to include charitable giving as part of client counseling.

Just imagine the positive impact on the College if every alum or friend made a donation.