All smiles: the 2010 ECAC basketball champs (photo by Ryan McKernan)

Everyone who was at the ECAC Championship game in Spaulding Gym on Sunday are probably wondering why their fingernails are so short today. The Owls defeated the Plymouth State Panthers 69-68 in overtime in a real nail-biter. “This was certainly one of the most exciting games I’ve seen at Keene State,” said sports information coordinator Stuart Kaufman. “It had all the elements: heated rivalry, back-and-forth scoring, and our five seniors in their last game.”

Were you there? Tell us about it.

If you weren’t there, visit the Women’s Basketball pages for a blow by blow.

Finally – after years of planning, construction, and campaigning, the KSC Advancement Division is moving to its new home in the Alumni Center on Main Street across from the Hale Building. Who’s in the Advancement Division? The Offices of the Vice President for Advancement, Alumni & Parent Relations, Advancement Services, Marketing and Communications (formerly College and Media Relations and Online Communications), and Development.

We’re packing our boxes and should be hauling stuff to our new offices the week of March 15th. Want to know more about this project? Maybe you’d even like to see photos of the progress. It’s all on the Alumni Center page.

Oh, and even though our entire division is moving, our individual phone numbers and mailstop numbers will stay the same.

Dr. Anne-Marie Mallon, Dr. Paul Vincent, and Dr. Therese Seibert all have something very special in common. Each have been recognized recently for their achievements as outstanding faculty members.

Presented annually since 1971, the KSC Alumni Association Distinguished Teacher Award recognizes excellence in teaching at Keene State College, based upon the following criteria: excellence in classroom teaching, encouragement of independent thinking, rapport with students in and out of the classroom, and effective student advising.

So if you know a beloved KSC prof who fits that criteria, nominate him or her for the award. They deserve it! Nominations are due April 16, 2010. You can download the nomination form on the Distinguished Teacher Award page. Get on it!

Approximately 70 students attended the Academic and Career Advising Office’s job fair preparation workshop on February 2nd. Students were also invited to one-on-one meetings with an alumni volunteer the following week for a resume critique, and 28 students took advantage of that.

Then on February 28, 10 KSC alums volunteered to participate in the Student Center Leadership Development Program’s Second Annual Etiquette Dinner. This group of alums joined 60 current students for an evening of networking, conversation, and sharing.

Students with Sasha Kaylor ’06 (l) and Karen Naharay ’06 (r) at the Etiquette Dinner

Later this spring, recent alums will participate in a “Life after KSC” panel covering such topics as choosing a career path, navigating the transition from school to professional life, deciding about graduate school, and much more.

Are you so passionate about something that you’d like to share it with the world – or at least, with the rest of the KSC community? Well, here’s your chance. The wonderful folks at the Thorne invite you to display your art, crafts, collectibles, or whatever you’re passionate about in a summer exhibition called Passionate Pursuits: Keene State College Alumni, Faculty, Staff, and Our Community Partner the Friends of the Thorne Share Their Creations and Collectibles. The exhibit opens Friday, June 4, and continues through Sunday, July 25; then it reopens Friday, September 3, through Thursday, September 30. The Friends of the Thorne will host a public reception on Friday, June 4, from 4:30 to 7 p.m.

This is a non-juried exhibit, and the gallery will accept pieces on a first-come, first-served basis and display as many items as it can. The exhibit is not meant to promote a business or product, so nothing will be for sale.

This will be the third Passionate Pursuits exhibit. Past exhibits have included a bird-carving collection, rock-climbing photos, handcrafted baskets, hand-colored photos, baseball memorabilia, a Native American collection, hand-knitted items, wood-turned containers, and an antique penny-farthing bicycle.

If you’d like to share your passion, please fill out our online form by Monday, April 19. We’d also like you to write a paragraph explaining why you are passionate about the material you’ve submitted and what the Thorne Gallery means to you and the community.

NEISDA 2010 Swimmers of the Meet Cody Larrimore and Kaila Umbarger.

The Owl men and women swimmers are awash in victory! They headed to the Upper Valley Aquatic Center in White River Junction, Vt., on Sunday, Feb. 21 to defend their New England Intercollegiate Swimming and Diving Association (NEISDA) Championships and did just that. Both teams expected Bentley College to be a formidable foe. Maybe it was, but that still didn’t stop the Owls. The women posted a 924-802 victory over Bentley, capturing their third-consecutive crown, and the men earned their second-straight title with a 656-555 victory.

The KSC men and women set 30 school records and six meet marks in the three-day event. Cody Larrimore, a senior from Trappe, Md., was named the men’s Swimmer of the Meet, while Kaila Umbarger, a freshman from Chelmsford, Mass., was selected as the women’s Swimmer of the Meet. Kristine Trutor, a Holden, Mass., native, won the award for most points by a senior.

More information.

Our own Melanie Gosselin ’90, executive director of the New Hampshire Food Bank, has just been named to the New Hampshire Business Review’s 2010 list of Outstanding Women in Business. These annual awards “celebrate the success and achievements of women across the state’s diverse business community.” NHBR states that each year, it recognizes “six women who have truly excelled, not only in their professional lives, but as leaders and role models.”

After Melanie took over the New Hampshire Food Bank in 2003, she saw the organization’s food distribution more than double from 2.3 to 5.8 million pounds in 2009. The Food Bank also now supports 411 programs – more than twice as many as it did when she first took the reins. Quite an accomplishment!

Do you know Melanie? Use the “comments” link below to drop us a note.

Are you looking for a career opportunity? Keene State College alumni and students are welcome to attend the annual New Hampshire College and University Council Job Fair, Wednesday, February 17, from 1–6 p.m. at the Center of NH Radisson Hotel (700 Elm Street, Manchester, NH 03101). This is the largest academically sponsored job fair north of Boston.

Nicaragua
Seven students and four staff members traveled to Nicaragua in January as part of an integrative studies course, Nicaragua in Change. The group met with journalists, environmentalists, women’s groups, musicians, artists, and community leaders who taught them about the economic, psychological, and political consequences of the Contra war on the next generation. The group also heard traditional folk music and live reggae in Managua and visited an active volcano in Masaya and a waterfall in Rio Blanco.

As part of the learning experience, there was also time for sampling local cuisine, staying with families on a rural farming cooperative, dancing, laughing, swatting piñatas, playing sports with the local kids, making tortillas, milking cows, riding horses, and watching monkeys on the lake in Grenada. Oh, and the gang helped local community members paint a preschool. The paint job included a mural featuring planet earth and the KSC owl. The small building, which had been unused, will now serve as a schoolhouse for the cooperative’s youngest children.

l–r: Dr. Margaret Walsh (sociology), Sam Wyman, Carleigh Warner, Brenna Donoghue, Katie Weiss, Lia Amante, Becca Lorden, Patrick Davis Also on the trip, but not in the photo were Eleanor Vander Haegen (professor emerita, sociology) and Tamara Stenn (adjunct faculty, management), John Halter (budget analyst, KSC)

The students are now back at KSC, wiser, more enriched, and more fulfilled. Please join them in April as they share their own experiences from the trip as well as their diverse research projects and perspectives on international issues and community service. They’d like to thank  everyone who bought poinsettias during their December fundraiser and the College for supporting this experiential learning course.

El Salvador
Fourteen students and four staff members headed to El Salvador in January for a Habitat for Humanity Global Village Project. Working with local masons, the group helped build a home for a local family. But besides all the hard work, the trip included hiking a volcano in San Miguel, sampling local foods, learning to dance the salsa, visiting an orphanage, and surfing at a local beach. The group had a great time and made many close friends. They’ve continued to stay in touch via the wonders of email and Facebook. When you’re on campus, please check out all the photos  in the display case on the third floor of the Student Center.

First row, l–r: Ellen Estabrook, Casey Bernier, Hannah Dumas, Ashley Lorrain, Kasey Donovan, Peg Richmond Second row, l–r: Marc Perreault, Kelly Manning, Kelsey Hubbard, Janelle Derella Third row, l–r: Mark Gempler, Mary McEntee, Glenn Field, Kristen Powers, Justin Powers, Brandon Knight, Ian LaBelle, Paul Striffolino

Construction on the Alumni Center, just across Main St. from Hale, is almost finished. Alumni from all over the country have pitched in to help raise funds for the project, and we truly appreciate everyone’s support!

The entire Advancement Division (Advancement Services, Alumni & Parent Relations, Development, and Marketing & Communications) are sorting files and packing boxes, getting ready to move into their new offices on March 16th!

For more information about the project or to help support the Alumni “All in” fundraising effort, please visit the Alumni Center page. There you will find architectural renderings, floor plans, and information about the new programs for alumni. We look forward to welcoming you to our new home!