Lycoming College 2020 President's Report/Magazine

Mark Sitler ’86 Named 2020 Lycoming College Alumnus of the Year Lycoming recognized Mark Sitler ’86 ’09P ’12P as Alumnus of the Year as part of the Williamsport/Lycoming Chamber of Commerce Education Celebration. In 1996, he was named senior vice president and chief underwriting officer for Granite State Insurance Company of the American International Group in New York City. He returned to Williamsport in 1996 to join his current team at The Hartman Group, where he serves as corporate officer and principal. Sitler is a member of the Lycoming College President’s Leadership Council and serves on the Penn College Foundation board of directors. He also is a member of the Organizational Wellness Committee for the River Valley Regional YMCA. He is a proud graduate of Leadership Lycoming, an organization where he later served as a member of its board of trustees and advisory group. He and his wife, Connie, are the proud parents of Lycoming alumnae Markell Sitler Kunigus ’09 and Ashley Sitler ’12 . couple met at Lycoming and were married on Aug. 30, 1980, in Williamsport. They have two daughters and are excited to welcome their first grandchild this fall. Tim has had a long and impactful career in procurement for environmental clean-up projects which led to Tim and Cathy moving from state to state before settling in Missouri. Cathy spent several years raising their children and selling houses before obtaining her master’s degree in secondary education and teaching high school biology, zoology, and botany for 16 years. They enjoyed competing at American Quarter Horse Association shows around the country, camping, and spending time with family through the years and look forward to what lies ahead. 80 Gayle Allison has retired from the position of director of advancement services in the Advancement Office at Lycoming College after 12 years of dedicated service. Gayle previously worked at Susquehanna Health for 27 years before joining the College. 87 In July 2019, Elaine (Eck) Gallagher was promoted to senior vice president, physician services and practice plan administration, at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. In this role, she is responsible for 86 Lyco girls Debbie (Bopf) Rice , Kathleen (Muller) Altonen ’87 , Jackie (Bair) Firuta ’85 , Braith (Eldridge) Dicker , Tammy (Rhinehart) Strayer , and Sara Hogan ’85 celebrating their spring break again...34 years later in Nokomis, Fla. leading the academic medical practices ($0.5 billion) which include over 1,500 faculty/ physicians in medicine, surgery, anesthesiology/critical care, radiology, pathology, and psychiatry/behavioral medicine. She serves as a collaborative leader in executing multi- department initiatives and driving strategic alignment. Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia is the oldest hospital in the United States dedicated exclusively to pediatrics, and is considered a world leader in innovative pediatric research, education, and clinical care. She has over 25 years of progressive experience in academic health care and has served on numerous boards and professional organizations. Lawrence Gallagher , MS, VMD, recently founded Villanova Veterinary Hospital in Wayne, Pa. After more than 20 years of practicing on the Main Line (Philadelphia suburbs), he purchased a one-acre property and completed extensive renovations to an over 200-year- old building on the property, creating a state-of-the art small animal veterinary practice. He also has recently completed all qualifying coursework and examinations and is currently writing case studies to obtain a certification in veterinary acupuncture. Elaine and Larry live in Villanova and have been happily married since graduating from Lycoming. They have two adult children, Adrienne, who is the practice manager at Villanova Veterinary Hospital, and Dane, who is completing his first year of veterinary school. In his free time, Larry enjoys SCUBA diving, fly fishing, hiking, photographing rattlesnakes in Pennsylvania, and tinkering on his two classic cars (1971 and 1973 Opel GTs). Elaine enjoys SCUBA diving, hiking, playing piano and organ at St. Thomas of Villanova, and playing the hammered dulcimer. 94 Michael Bell , visual artist and fine arts supervisor for Queen Anne’s County Public Schools, gave an inspiring keynote in May to launch the Virtual Maryland Arts Summit 2020. His keynote, “Envision,” challenged the art process through a unique approach to visual journaling by embracing one’s limitations and being fearless with creative vision. This expanded upon his M:BRACE session in April that kicked off the free professional development series for Maryland’s creative education force: Arts Educators, Arts 38 LYCOMING COLLEGE 2020 PRESIDENT’S REPORT/FALL MAGAZINE