Latest news with #UniversityofPittsburghatJohnstown
Yahoo
04-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
'Diverse, personal story': ABC News correspondent Ramos delivers Pitt-Johnstown commencement speech to around 400 graduates
JOHNSTOWN, Pa. – The University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown's 2024-25 class of about 400 graduates were celebrated Saturday with a commencement ceremony at the Pitt-Johnstown Sports Center. "We entered college during the COVID-19 pandemic," Pitt-Johnstown Student Government Association President Augie Mucci said as he addressed his fellow graduates. "It wasn't just a transition from high school to college. It forced us to grow up faster than expected – we adapted. We found friends, mentors and purpose in our studies and resilience that we didn't know we had. Over the past four years, he said, the graduates have grown to become "scientists, engineers, teachers, leaders." Graduates Lily Keslar (left), of Latrobe, wears her graduation cap decorated with words "what a wonderful world" as Julia Shima, of Elton, speaks with her at their commencement ceremony Saturday, May 3, 2025, at Pitt-Johnstown's Sports Center. Both Pitt-Johnstown graduates have completed undergraduate studies to become teachers. "Today, we stand on the edge of another change – careers, graduate school or a pause to catch our breath. Let us not fear change, but embrace it. We've done it before." A theme of "trusting your future self," and building "lived experience" continued in commencement speaker Stephanie Ramos' address to the graduates. Ramos is a national correspondent for ABC News, covering presidential administrations of Barack Obama and Donald Trump as well as "many of the critical events that in many ways have marked our lives," Pitt-Johnstown President Jem Spectar said. Ramos is also a U.S. Army Reserve major who has received medals for her honorable service, including the meritorious service medal. In 2008, she was a first lieutenant in Iraq, receiving multiple medals. After a year-long deployment, she and her husband returned to Iraq to produce the award-winning documentary "To Baghdad and Back" using footage she captured on a small handheld camcorder. Ramos ABC correspondent and U.S. Army Reserve Major Stephanie Ramos delivers the 2025 commencement address at the Pitt-Johnstown Sports Center Saturday May, 3, 2025. Prior to ABC, Ramos reported for local stations in Kansas City, Missouri, and Topeka, Kansas, where she established herself as a tenacious reporter covering important issues including immigration, politics and crime. Ramos related her story to the graduates – including the months of persistent attempts to get a foot in the door first, in local TV news and subsequently at ABC. As she worked her way to becoming a national correspondent, she took different roles in the newsroom. "I didn't care about title," Ramos said. "I cared about my mission." After the terror attacks of 9-11, she said she wanted to serve in the U.S. military. Her deployment was a "shock" and "lonely," she said, "but I signed up for it." She said she felt her career in the military and in journalism intersected. Her lived experience as a mother and as a Latina woman also intersected with her career. Ramos said all 340 million people in the United States has a story that needs to be told – "every one of us has a different, diverse, personal story." She said her experiences made her a better journalist and a better person. "Every part of you is an asset," she told the graduates. "Don't apologize for any part. Lead with it."
Yahoo
04-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
ABC News correspondent to speak at UPJ commencement
JOHNSTOWN, Pa. – The University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown has announced that ABC News correspondent and U.S. Army Reserve Maj. Stephanie Ramos will be this year's commencement speaker. 'Ms. Ramos is an exceptionally talented and successful national news correspondent with a record of meritorious service in our military,' Pitt-Johnstown President Jem Spectar said in a release. 'We are honored to have her share her inspirational journey from small-town Topeka, Kansas, to the highest echelons of national and international reporting.' She'll address the UPJ graduates during the 1 p.m. ceremony Saturday at the Pitt-Johnstown Sports Center. Ramos is an acclaimed reporter who has worked across all ABC News platforms, from 'Good Morning America' and 'ABC News Tonight' to ABC News Live, 'Nightline' and '20/20.' She started with the agency as a multi-platform reporter in Washington, D.C., and covered the Pentagon. Ramos has reported on a variety of topics during her career, including the COVID-19 pandemic, the White House, the Alabama U.S. Senate race and the Parkland shooting. Prior to joining ABC News, she worked for local stations in Missouri, Kansas and South Carolina. In 2008, during the Iraq War, Ramos was a first lieutenant, and upon her return from the tour, she and her husband produced the award-winning special 'To Baghdad and Back' using footage she captured on a small handheld camcorder. During Saturday's ceremony, she'll be presented with the President's Medal of Distinctive Excellence.
Yahoo
15-04-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Pitt-Johnstown hosting student teacher showcase
JOHNSTOWN, Pa. – The University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown is hosting a biennial student teacher showcase Tuesday at the John P. Murtha Center For Public Service and National Competitiveness on the Richland Township campus. Teacher candidates in the school's education program will present themselves and their professional dossiers from 4 to 6 p.m. Students will talk with visitors about their experiences, aspirations and more during the event. Disciplines will range from early childhood education and special education to secondary education sciences, social studies and mathematics. The showcase serves as the final opportunity for the pre-service teachers to gain insight from other professionals before entering the workforce. About 28 teacher candidates scheduled to graduate this spring are expected to present at the gathering. According to the university, 90% of education majors secure employment in their desired field within a year of graduation and 82% of them find employment in Pennsylvania. Additionally, Pitt-Johnstown touts a certification and licensure rate of 89% as of 2022. The university offers bachelor's degrees in early childhood, middle level and secondary education, as well as a dual- enrollment program for early childhood and special education. There are enhanced degree options for science, technology, engineering and mathematics tracks and English as a second language. For more information, visit
Yahoo
04-04-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Pitt-Johnstown students showcase research during annual SPACE event
JOHNSTOWN, Pa. – University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown students from a variety of disciplines came together Wednesday to share senior projects, creative works, independent study findings and more as part of the annual Symposium for the Promotion of Academic and Creative Enquiry. 'It's like the Super Bowl of research for UPJ,' undergraduate research coordinator Matthew Tracey said. The chemistry professor organizes the annual SPACE event that this year had 80 presentations with between one and five students at each display. The works ranged from food waste solutions and an auto cable wrapper to ways to increase polio vaccinations, a tick repellent, the boundaries of free speech, Pitt-Johnstown's watershed and more. 'This is the culmination of a year of research for some of these students,' Tracey said. That included juniors Sara Bowers and Natalie Lippincott, who presented on their tick repellent BITE (binding to increase tick evasion.) The pair of biology majors, who minor in chemistry, worked with several others to develop and study the concept, including Tracey and associate professor of biology Jill Henning. BITE uses a novel approach to repelling blacklegged ticks – known as deer ticks – by covering the carbon dioxide a person expels through their skin with a hemoglobin agent, Lippincott said. In their tests, the ticks were significantly dispelled using the product, which utilizes aloe vera as a vehicle. 'It's wonderful,' professor Massasati Ahmad Saleh said after talking to the undergraduates. He noted that UPJ has a sizeable amount of wild acreage on campus and students are often not advised to wander in due to tick bite concern. This project could alleviate those worries, he said. Bowers said she's glad to be part of a project that could have an important impact on the local area. Pryce Donovan and his teammates – Ethan Koontz, Spencer Pfarr, Alexzander Toto and Kyle Weiser – were also interested in improving the region with their designs for expanding the Flight 93 National Memorial near Shanksville, Somerset County. The group of senior civil engineers proposed adding a theater, museum, overlook tower and infinity pool to the Sept. 11, 2001, crash site of United Flight 93. 'It kind of just snowballed after a visit,' Donovan said. The engineering students have worked with the National Park Service to develop their ideas and noted their appreciation for the collaboration on the project. Donovan said the work was well-received at SPACE. Tracey said the symposium isn't solely for students to show off their hard work. It's also a fantastic opportunity to introduce other undergraduates to the program and possibly inspire them to get involved, he said. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, the annual gathering was a sizeable event and is growing again. Tracey said the 80 presentations were nearly too many to fit in Heritage Hall in the Living and Learning Center on campus. His goal for next year is to have 100 displays and move to a larger venue.
