The Behrend Beacon Behrend seniors by ,f enna Dominick staff writer The college experience is very unique. There arc many chances to learn and grow, inside and outside the classroom. A multitude of memo ries are made and cherished for a lifetime. Twenty years from now, when students are alumni of Penn State Bchrend, wouldn't it be nice to have a physical representation of at least some of those precious moments? What a bet ter way to do so than to take part in Behrend's Senior Class Gift Program. In February 2002, the Flag Pole Memorial was selected as the 2002 Senior Class Gift. A large and highly visible American flag and flagpole will be located near the new baseball fields and will he seen from all over campus as well as the new highway. It will provide a permanent memorial to the Sept. I I attacks. This year's gift is special in that it will he dedicated to the victims of the events of Sept. I I th. At the base of the flagpole will he an engraved stone that reads "Class of 2002" as well as "In Memory of the Victims of 9-I 1 -01.- The flagpole will also commemorate two PENNSTATE n. e Ihilread Coitr Sludenti.:unt (pleas* pint) I pledge the amount shown below as my contribution to the 2002 Senior Class Gift Campaign (or as specified). The balance of my general deposit, at the time of my graduation will be my gift. 1 wish to pledge: 1331.11Wr of my general deposit O $ of my general deposit J An additional cash gift of g • (More information will be mailed to you.) I would like my gift to fund! 3 The 2002 Senior Ciao Gift Memorial Flag Pole 3 Other (College, campus, or special program) =IC= Kurre celebrates 25 years of teaching at Behrend by Alyssa Pecoai staff writer While spending 25 years at Penn State Behrend, Dr. James Kurre has seen the school go through a world of changes. Kurre started out at Behrend in 1977 as an instructor ()I' economics. He only expected to stay one or two years here and then move on to a larger city with a larger campus, thinking, "Why would anyone come to a college this small?" Kurre studied at the University of Cincinnati, then he attended four years of graduate school at Wayne State University, Detroit. At that school there were nearly 40,000 students. When he came to Behrend, there were only 1700 students at the time. Kurre noticed the vast difference in size between schools. However, he began find comfort in the small and friendly atmosphere here at Behrend. Kurre quickly noticed the personal relationships he began to develop at Behrend, admiring how "students know the faculty and the faculty know the students." When Kurre first began teaching at Behrend, the school environment was set up very differently than it is today. Besides having far fewer students and fewer, less-developed learning facilities, the school year setup was likewise different. Instead of having a Fall and Spring semester per academic year, the school functioned in trimesters, three 10-week terms per year. In addition, Kurre noted that "the workload for teachers was much heavier, most of them teaching eight classes per year." However proficient and skilled he was in the field of economics, Kurre was not always interested in the subject. In fact, he planned on majoring in accounting until the middle of his sophomore year of college, when he acquired a liking for his economics class. Kurre also attributes his interest in economics to his father, who was an entrepreneur, running a small neighborhood business. His father exposed him to the business world and taught him skills for dealing with the public. Kurre had not planned on becoming a teacher either, until he became a teaching assistant in graduate school, which paid for his tuition. Kurre advises that the only way to become a good teacher is to "learn by experience and mistakes," as he did while in graduate school. After completing grad school, Kurre applied and found his first and only teaching job at Behrend. Since then, he has gone from an instructor of economics, to an assistant professor after taking five years to get his Ph D. Then, finally in 1982, he became the associate professor of Economics, the position he holds today. Presently, Kurre is responsible for teaching My gift to the 2002 Senior Class Gift Campaign Drop in on-campus mail at the Mail Room in the Reed Union Building Behrend alums whose lives were lost in the at tacks. Howard Kane was a part of the Class of 1983, and Michele Kane graduated from Behrend in 1995. As Director of Alumni Relations, Kevin Moore oversees this project from creative be ginning to prodigious end. The committee's chair is Clint Lewis, who graduated in the spring of 2002. Along with serving as the head of the committee, Lewis has also donated a pair of football tickets for a drawing held Wednesday afternoon. The winner, Swee-Ping Ngeow, re ceived two tickets and a parking pass to the Penn State vs. Virginia game Nov. 9. This drawing was to help in raising funds for the gill. The committee urges all students to take a moment to think about the impact that they can have at Behrend. All students create a general deposit of $5O at the time of admission. It serves to safeguard property and equipment used by students. The general deposit is retained until a student withdraws or graduates. Students can pledge the balance of their general deposit or make an outright contribution to the Senior Class Gift. The amount raised to date is nearly $1,900, and the more funds generated, the bigger the Setnestir economics classes such as Introduction to Microeconomics courses, a Money and Banking course, and a Regional Economics course, which studies the local economy of the city of Erie. Through his 25 years at Behrend, Kurre has been busy with various activities. He is currently an adviser to the Society of Undergraduate Economists (SUE). He has attended many Regional Economists' Conferences around the world, and has researched and published books containing the study of the costs of living in each of the 67 counties in Pennsylvania in 1992 and 2000. He is also the co-director of the Economic Research Institute of Erie, where he is responsible for analyzing local economic studies since 1982. Kurre's hard work and involvement have not gone unnoticed; in fact, it has definitely paid off. He has won the Behrend Advising Award and although he does not want to brag, he also won the Behrend Teaching Award twice, being the only person to accomplish that feat. In his spare time, Kurre also manages to be a part of the improv comedy troupe "In All Seriousness," along with his wife. He is also the president of the board of the Roadhouse Theater. Among the more personal aspects of Kurre's life, he met his wife at Penn State Behrend, who was a former, non-traditional student at Behrend. They currently live in North East, where they have a farm. Kurre has been fortunate enough to teach nearly 6,000 students during his career at Behrend. He is proud to acknowledge that among his Economics students emerged many bright, outstanding people with whom he still keeps in close touch more than 20 years later. Among the more recognizable former students are current Erie County Executive, Rick Schenker, Professor Frank De Wolf (MIS), and Professor Bob Patterson (Accounting and Business). In all his years at Behrend, Kurre has seen the school "move into a higher realm, becoming more competitive, better funded with better facilities, and essentially bigger and stronger." As for the faculty, Kurre says, "They feel like family and I am glad to work with people who are passionate about their jobs." Kurre also notes that the students are "increasingly stronger every year." He advises them to combine three ideas when searching and pursuing a career. "First, find something you're good at, then be sure you can make a desirable salary, and last, but not least, make sure it is something you thoroughly enjoy." Friday, November 1, 2002 leave their mark Swee-Ping Ngeow, recipient of two tickets to the Penn State game against Virginia Nov. 9, strikes a winning pose. memorial will be able to be Alumni Relations' goal is to build strong rela tionships between Behrend students and alumni. Students can ask questions about careers, oppor tunities, or the school in general. Two of their main events are Freshman Move- In Days and Senior Salute Days. In August, they help freshmen mo e in to their dorms and get settled. Seniors are invited to sign up for Com mencement and get tickets, as well as pick up their caps and gowns during Senior Salute Days, held this past week. All students are welcome to get involved with Hopwood returns to Behrend as lab coordinator by Lori DeFabio staff writer Many Behrend graduates leave Erie when they are finished with school, but some realize Erie isn't a had to place to live and return. This happened with the Behrend Biology Department's Carley Hopwood. Hopwood started her college life at Penn State University Park. She moved to Behrend her sophomore year, and decided to stay here to graduate. When she started college, she knew that she wanted a career in biology. When she was a student at Behrend, she participated in undergraduate research and enjoyed working in the lab. Hopwood's time at Behrend helped prepare her for her future career as Biology Lab coordinator . "Ending up back at Behrend was an idea I'd always had, but I didn't know I would be able to do it so soon," said Hopwood. "I met my husband while we were both in school here, and we decided Erie would be a good place to settle down and start a family." After graduating from Behrend in 1998, Hopwood worked at NEOUCOM, a medical school outside of Akron. She then worked at the Henry M. Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of Military Medicine in Rockville, Md. Before coming to Behrend, she ran the Gene Expression Core Facility at the Lerner Research Institute, which is a part of the Cleveland Clinic Foundation in Cleveland. "I've always worked in a laboratory, so I have a lot of practical experience to share with my students," said Hopwood. She moved back to Erie in July and has been employed at Behrend since August. "My move to Erie went smoothly," Hopwood said. behrcolls@aol.com their Senior Class Gift. Past ideas for gifts have included water fountains and park benches: how ever, the possibilities are endless. Any sugges tions may he sent to the committee. "This process takes time, hut it is really worth all the hard work and effort. - said Moore. "It gives graduating seniors a chance to leave their mark on campus, and that is a really special thing "We got here in July. which I planned, heeause there's nothing like Erie in the suminci !" Many people think that Rehrend has a great campus size and that the classes and people here are always nice and friendly. I lop‘\ ood is no cLption, "Behrend's student hod \ is \ triendlN.•" she said. "Campus is a great siie, and there als% SCCIIIS to he something going on.'' Hopwood is a Biology I .ab coordinator, hut she also teaches labs and helps prepare materials for them. This semester Hopwood teaches three sections of the Biology 230 W lab, and next semester she will have three semesters of the Biology 2411 W PHOTO BY JEFF HANKEY / BEHREND BEACON Carley Hopwood has joined Behrend's science department as Biology Lab coordinator.
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