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S T O C K T O N U N I V E R S I T Y

Message from the Stockton University Board of Trustees on Transition PlanDear Stockton University Community:

The Board of Trustees was notified by President Herman Saatkamp April 28 that he will be taking medical leave effective immediately. The Board has accepted his letter and extends its best wishes to him.

By the terms of his contract, the Provost and Executive Vice President of the University will assume the position of Act-ing President. Accordingly, Dr. Harvey Kesselman has been named to succeed Dr. Saatkamp with all the authority, powers, duties and responsibilities asso-ciated with the executive management of the University. Dr. Kessel-man will serve in that capacity until July 1, 2015 when he will depart to become President of the University of Southern Maine (USM).

The Board is committed to working with Acting President Kesselman and the entire Stockton community in the search for an Interim President. Dr. Kesselman will be establishing three Task Forces that will include represen-tation from the Board of Trustees, administration, faculty and staff. The Task Forces will focus their work in the following three areas:

• Shared Governance• Atlantic City Initiatives• Interim President Search

Acting President Kesselman has asked that these three Committees begin their work immediately so as to allow him to begin his tenure at USM on or before July 1, 2015.

The Board is deeply grateful to the entire Stockton community for your voices and your perspectives. It is our strong intention to listen and to be inclusive as we move ahead in the next weeks and months.

• Message from the Stockton University Board of Trustees on Transition Plan

• More than 500 Guests Raise Over $300,000 at Scholarship Gala

• Dr. Fleck, Students Organize Workshop on Building a Healthy Brain

• Career Center’s Walter Tarver Elected President-Elect of EACE

• Dr. Janice Joseph Leads Delegation on Crime Prevention in Qatar

• 100 Percent of Stockton MSOT Graduates Pass National Boards

• Dr. Carol Rittner Invited to Attend Forum in Fez, Morocco

• Bring Your Kids to Work Day

• Dr. Devine Wins Bow-Tie Contest

IN THIS ISSUE

Dr. Harvey KesselmanDr. Herman Saatkamp

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More than 500 guests helped Stockton University students Saturday eve-ning at the 35th Annual Stockton University Scholarship Benefit Gala by raising a net amount of over $300,000 for the Stockton Foundation.

Gala net proceeds go to the Stockton Benefit Gala Endowed Scholarship Fund, which prior to the event had grown to over $2.9 million. Some 70 students received scholarships totaling $80,000 last year from the endowed fund, which continues to grow.

“We plan to provide even more Stockton students with the opportunity to fulfill their academic promise in the coming year by awarding over $100,000 in scholarships from the fund,” said Dr. Philip Ellmore, chief development officer and executive director of the Foundation. “Through the dedication and hard work of many in the extended Stockton com-munity, the Foundation was in a position to award over $600,000 in scholarships this year, thanks to proceeds from the Gala as well as from individual donors.”

Staff from the Office of Development and Alumni Affairs were instru-mental in the organization of the Gala.

Guests entering the lobby were greeted by “Crimson Carpetta,” aka Kar-in Ekberg of Bristol, Pa., who appeared to be 10 feet tall in her flaming red costume, which covered the elevated platform on which she stood.

Guests circulated and enjoyed live entertainment and special menus in each of four spaces at the Stockton Seaview, an innovative format for the Gala this year.

Unique entertainment included a sword swallower, a balloon eater and a woman who twirled batons of fire and swallowed them.

There were dueling pianos in one room, an acoustic duo in another, a string quartet playing everything from classics to classic rock, and a high-energy cover band for dancing. A fifth room was dedicated to the silent auction. For the first time, guests could use their mobile phones to update their bids without returning to the auction room.

Several scholarship recipients told their stories in a video shown at the event. To watch the video, click here. To view photos from the event, visit Stockton’s Flickr album.

More than 500 Guests Raise Over $300,000 at Scholarship Gala

Arminta Brown and Ayisha Lee of Development and Alumni Affairs with “Crimson Carpetta” Karin Ekberg at the 35th Annual Stockton University Scholarship Benefit Gala held at Stockton Seaview on April 25.

Dr. Fleck, Students Organize Workshop on Building a Healthy BrainDr. Jessica Fleck, associate professor of Psychology, and students from Stockton’s Seminar in Neuroscience, held a popular public workshop on brain health titled: “Me, My Brain, and I: Building a Healthy Brain for Today and Tomorrow” April 14.

More than 100 members of the public attended to learn about the latest brain research and how to keep one’s mind function-ing well through topics such as nutrition, exercise and limiting the effects of depression. Attendees could sign up for any two of six sessions which included: Nutrition and the Brain, Depression and Brain Health, Exercise and the Brain, Building Cognitive Reserve, Is My Memory Normal?, and Physical Health Conditions and the Brain.

The community response to the event was overwhelmingly positive and communicates the need for Stockton to offer re-sources of this type in the future.

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Career Center’s Walter Tarver Elected President-Elect of EACEWalter Tarver, director of the Career Center, was recently elected President-Elect of the Eastern As-sociation of Colleges and Employers (EACE). The EACE is an association of 1,000-plus career ser-vices professionals and employers providing educational programs and services to its members in the Mid-Atlantic and New England region.

Tarver will serve as President-Elect until he takes office in June 2016. He has served on the board of EACE, and on committees such as conference planning.

Tarver, who has been with Stockton since 1999 and has served as director since 2007, obtained his B.A. in Political Science and his M.B.A. in Marketing from The State University of New York Col-lege at Buffalo. He is currently pursuing an Ed.D. in Higher Education Administration at Northeastern University. He teaches The Power of Sports, a freshman seminar course, as an adjunct professor at Stockton.

“It is truly an honor to be recognized by my peers as someone who can help shape the future of our association,” Tarver said.

Dr. Janice Joseph Leads Delegation on Crime Prevention in QatarDr. Janice Joseph, Distinguished Professor of Criminal Justice, led an Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences delegation of eight mem-bers at the 13th United Nations Congress on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice held in Doha, Qatar. More than 4,000 participants from 149 countries attended the event held from April 12-19. Nearly 200 sessions discussed a variety of topics, including the rule of law, smuggling of migrants, combating wildlife crime, human trafficking and violence against women and children.

The UN Congress, which started in 1955 and occurs every five years, brings together high-level representatives of governments, intergov-ernmental and non-governmental organizations, criminal justice pro-fessionals and scholars to discuss current issues related to crime pre-vention and criminal justice.

Dr. Joseph also organized an international panel on violence against women on behalf of the International Scientific and Professional Advisory Council of the United Nations Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice Programme (ISPAC), chaired two panels and made a presentation.

“It was a great honor to have led the ACJS delegation during this very important UN event,” Dr. Joseph said.

Walter Tarver

Dr. Janice Joseph at the United Nations Congress on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice in Qatar.

100 Percent of Stockton MSOT Graduates Pass National BoardsDr. Theresa Bartolotta, dean of the School of Health Sciences, recently announced that 100 percent of the latest cohort of graduates from the Master of Science in Occupational Therapy (MSOT) program have passed the National Board for Cer-tification in Occupational Therapy Exam on the first attempt.

A total of 20 MSOT graduates took the exam.

“This is an exceptional achievement and a testament to the standard of excellence held by our faculty,” Dean Bartolotta said. “Kudos and thanks to: Kim Furphy, Victoria Schindler, Kathy Klein, Mary Kientz, Camille Sauerwald and Megan Foti for a job well done.”

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We want to know about things going on in the Stockton community. Do you have an unusual hobby? Did one of your co-workers win an award or perform outstanding public service? Births, weddings, graduations and the like are all good things to submit to The Stockton Times. Also, tell us what you think of the new design! Contact the editor at 609-626-5521 or email StocktonTimes@stockton.edu.

News about distinguished students can now be found at Distinctive Stockton Students. To contribute a news item for the blog, please contact the editor at distinctive@stockton.edu.

Send Us Your News!

Bring Your Kids to Work Day

Dr. Carol Rittner Invited to Attend Forum in Fez, MoroccoDr. Carol Rittner, Distinguished Professor of Holocaust & Genocide Stud-ies, and Dr. Marsha Raticoff Grossman, professor of Holocaust Studies, was one of 30 scholars and religious leaders from around the world invited by United Nations Office on the Prevention of Genocide and the Responsibility to Protect (New York, NY) and the King Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz Interna-tional Centre for Interreligious and Intercultural Dialogue (Vienna, Austria) to participate in the Forum on the Role of Religious Leaders in Preventing Incitement that could lead to Atrocity Crimes. The forum was held in Fez, Morocco, April 22-23, 2015.

Dr. Rittner explained that in many instances, sectarian violence in different parts of the world has been preceded or accompanied by hate speech and advocacy of religious hatred that constitutes incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence, often by religious leaders. However, religious leaders can – and have – played an important and positive role in preventing such violence, she added.

“The overall goal of the Fez Forum was to develop a Plan of Action aimed at the prevention of the incitement to violence that could lead to atrocity crimes,” Dr. Rittner said.

Dr. Carol Rittner (right), Distinguished Profes-sor of Holocaust & Genocide Studies and Dr. Marsha Raticoff Grossman, professor of Ho-locaust Studies, at the Fez Forum with the UN Secretary General’s Special Adviser for the Pre-vention of Genocide, Adama Dieng of Seneghal.

Dr. Devine Wins Bow-Tie Contest

Joanne Yost, secretarial assistant in Admissions and her grandson Peyton Petrosh, and Stephanie Fontanes, principle clerk typist in Admissions, with her daughters Alana, middle, and Ella.

Dr. Jack Devine, an adjunct history instructor, recently won The Press of Atlantic City’s bow-tie contest. Dr. Devine gar-nered half of the nearly 500 votes in the contest. His bow-tie wearing shot was taken at the Odessa National Academic Theater of Opera and Ballet in the Ukraine.