Slippery Rock University

There will be plenty of cheers for Slippery Rock University in Pittsburgh, May 5, when a group representing SRU takes to the streets as part of more than 40,000 runners in the Dick's Sporting Goods Pittsburgh Marathon.

When Istvan Kovacs was 11 years old he watched the Hungarian national table tennis team upset perennial powerhouse China in the world championships. His appreciation of the sport only grew when his father set up a table for him and friends to learn from the players they watched on television. Forty years later, Kovacs is still fascinated with the sport. Kovac, a Slippery Rock University assistant professor of physical and health education, returned to his native Hungary earlier this month as the only American presenter at the International Table Tennis Federation Sports Science Congress, which took place in Budapest in conjunction with the ITTF World Tennis Table Championships. The congress was attended by more than 150 scholars, scientists and coaches seeking to advance the sport of table tennis through research in areas related to everything from exercise physiology and sports psychology to coaching techniques and game play strategies

Cadets from Slippery Rock University's Army ROTC program were recognized for their outstanding achievements at the SRU ROTC Award Ceremony, April 25, at the Slippery Rock Township Municipal Building. The event was sponsored by the Slippery Rock Veterans of Foreign Wars Lacey Christley Post 6231.

The moment when cadets from Slippery Rock University's Army ROTC program officially become commissioned officers is powerful and life-changing. This year's ceremony, at 5 p.m., May 10 in the Smith Student Center Ballroom, will see 13 cadets from SRU sworn in as officers, receive their new insignia of rank as second lieutenants and accept their first salute from a noncommissioned officer. The event is open to the public.

Niyah Pope, a senior early childhood and special education major from Turtle Creek, and Cynthia Rush, a sophomore criminology major from Bentleyville, are the recipients of the 2019 Marjorie Stephenson Scholarship.

As a computer science professor at Slippery Rock University, Deborah Whitfield speaks in the 1s and 0s of binary code, but when it comes to exercising, her body only computes a zero. That all changed in 2016 when she signed up for the Rock Personal Training Program, a service at SRU where exercise science students in the Senior Synthesis course provide one-to-one fitness instruction to students, University employees and community members.

Nicole Dunlop, a Slippery Rock University sophomore homeland security major from Latrobe, was elected president of the Slippery Rock Student Government Association April 11. Dunlop served as the SGA's vice president of internal affairs for 2018-19 academic year.

After four years of seemingly endless rehearsals and performances - not to mention sweat and probably a few tears - 14 seniors from Slippery Rock University's Department of Dance will take the stage one final time as a group for their senior BFA dance concert, "Full Circle," at 4 p.m., April 27 at Swope Music Hall.

People often compare an undesirable and lengthy waiting period to having served a prison sentence. But a group of Slippery Rock University students are bucking that trend and savoring the fact they are "serving time" as part of an experimental class with incarcerated classmates. The Inside-Out Prison Class, a 300-level course being offered for the first time this semester at SRU, brings together college students with incarcerated students for a semester-long course in a correctional setting.

Slippery Rock University will continue it monthlong Celebration of Excellence with an April 18 "Celebration of Achievement," an award ceremony recognizing student involvement and achievement in academics, extracurricular activities and community engagement at 5 p.m. in the Smith Student Center Ballroom.

The Slippery Rock University Alumni Association will honor four recent graduates at its Annual Awards and Recognition Banquet at 5 p.m., April 27 at the Russell Wright Alumni House. The association will also honor a number of students with awards and scholarships. Marshall Tuten, a dual business administration in economics and professional Spanish major from Slippery Rock, and Dallas Kline, a sport management major from Spring Grove, will be awarded the Outstanding Senior Man and Senior Woman Awards during the ceremony.

The Slippery Rock University Biology Department presented more than $28,000 to its majors at their annual Natural Sciences and Mathematics Banquet, April 15. The College of Health, Environment and Science awarded another $5,200 pushing the total figure of biology awards and scholarships to more than $33,500. Other departments in the sciences and math also presented awards to their students at the banquet.

For the last 17 years, the Slippery Rock University Jazz Festival has brought some of the world's most acclaimed jazz musicians to campus. This year's event will continue the tradition, said Jason Kush, SRU associate professor of music and festival director.

Author Marcus Garvey once wrote, "A people without the knowledge of their past history, origin and culture is like a tree without roots." In an effort to keep faculty, staff and students "rooted" to the institution's rich stories, Slippery Rock University Archives at the Bailey Library is teaming up with The Rocket, the independent student-run newspaper, to bring The Rock's history to light.

A team of 10 Slippery Rock University students will join nearly 150 students and administrators from the 14 universities that comprise Pennsylvania's State System of Higher Education to visit the state Capitol April 9-10.

Typically, Slippery Rock University students in the Public Relations and Integrated Marketing Communication Capstone course pitch marketing campaigns to local clients to help them drive sales. This year, however, two SRU groups developed campaigns to improve public services, and for one student, that meant pitching ideas to the same people who seven months earlier were risking their lives to save his family's home.

The Slippery Rock University council of trustees said goodbye to one of their own while celebrating the accomplishments and achievements of a variety of students today at their quarterly business meeting. The council bid farewell and commended Jairus Moore, a senior from Rochester and council secretary, who will graduate in May with a bachelor's degree in safety management and a master's degree in criminology for his service on the council.

Taking a cue from the award celebrations in Hollywood, Slippery Rock University will roll out a red carpet for local "celebrities" when the 7th Annual Nonprofit Organization Academy Awards Dinner and Gala takes place at 6:30 p.m., April 24. The event, which takes place at the Russell Wright Alumni House will be hosted by the Student Nonprofit Alliance at SRU.

Nearly 100 research projects, art exhibits and live performances will be presented at Slippery Rock University's annual Symposium for Student Research, Scholarship and Creative Achievement, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., April 18 in the Smith Student Center. The event will showcase the very best student-faculty scholarly work SRU has to offer across all disciplines.

lippery Rock University will bestow President's Awards for Civic Engagement upon three individuals who promote civic engagement through their leadership and innovative practices. More than 15 nominees were received by the SRU's Office for Community-Engaged Learning, which recruited an independent committee of students, faculty and staff to review and select winners in three categories: President's Student Civic Leadership Award, President's Civic Engagement Ambassador Award and the President's Community Partner Award.

Throughout the academic year, hundreds of students filter through Slippery Rock University's Office of Career Education and Development looking for help in answering the age-old question: "What am I going to do after graduation?" For Angella Dipasquale, a sophomore dual fine arts and English writing major from Valencia, the answer is simple: keep on doing what she's doing. As the co-founder and co-CEO of Angella Di-Signs, a specialty apparel company that deals in uniquely designed canvas sneakers, hats and outerwear, Dipasquale has found what she believes to be her calling.

Whether they are attempting to discover a more effective procedure to diagnose depression or coming up with better ways to predict how petroleum will react under varying conditions, Slippery Rock University students are diving deep into research. Now, they get to share it. Eleven research projects authored by SRU students were selected for presentation at the National Conference on Undergraduate Research, April 11-13 at Kennesaw State University. The 11 SRU students will be among more than 4,000 students at the NCUR, making the event the largest undergraduate research conference in the country.

Technology is rapidly changing the way teachers engage their students in the classroom, so before Slippery Rock University education students enter their field experience as student-teachers, they are oriented to existing practices and new technology they could encounter.

Michael Lugowski and Matthew Lugowski not only followed the same path in becoming students at Slippery Rock University, but they also entered into the Army National Guard and SRU's Army ROTC program together.

Slippery Rock University Theatre will bring Noel Coward's ghostly comedy, "Blithe Spirit," back to life through a variety of performances in the University Union's Multipurpose Room. Showtimes are 7:30 p.m., March 1-3 and 5-7; and 2 p.m., March 3.

What would Slippery Rock University look like if it were to become a more racially diverse community? That was a question asked at a recent event co-sponsored by the President's Commission for Race and Ethnic Diversity, an advocacy group that's looking to further develop its vision for diversity and inclusion for the University. Questions drive conversations - to ultimately arrive at answers - so having those thoughtful conversations is what the PCRED is putting an emphasis on, said Commission leaders.

A Slippery Rock University senior secondary education major from New Castle is the host of the Dirty History Podcast, a weekly podcast that covers historical topics that are more often than not overlooked by educators and academics alike, not because they are unimportant, but because they are, according to the show's description, "unpleasant, feminine, vulgar, unreasonably violent, shamelessly sexual or otherwise beneath standards of taste."

Anyone who's been to the Storm Harbor Equestrian Center at Slippery Rock University can see the benefits horseback riding has for children and young adults on the autism spectrum. Until recently, the evidence was based on the smiles on their faces, improved moods and other immeasurable indicators of reduced stress. But a recent study by a research team at SRU is helping assign empirical evidence to the value of therapeutic riding and equine-assisted activities.

When John Rindy became director of career education and development at Slippery Rock University seven years ago, he estimates that his office saw about 150 students per semester for services such as resume reviews. Charged with increasing visibility and value, Rindy and his staff have increased their interactions more than tenfold. They scheduled more than 1,900 student appointments in the 2018 fall semester.

When animal-assisted intervention students at Slippery Rock University were told there would be a surprise in a class last week, they figured a professional therapist would be bringing in a four-legged assistant. After all, it's common to see a real-life Lab -- that is, a Labrador retriever -- in the recreational therapy lab. Instead, students were introduced to a therapeutic robot made to resemble a baby harp seal and interact with patients as an alternative to animal therapy.